High Price of Freedom
by NickyM96
Summary: [JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover] The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?
1. Default Chapter

Title - High Price of Freedom  
Author - Nicky  
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)  
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover  
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?  
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Chapter 1  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Miss Parker gently pushes open the doors of the Centre Nursery,   
smiling briefly at the nurse inside. The nurse nods back and   
finishes the notes she's making before leaving Miss Parker alone.   
This was their daily ritual. Miss Parker would arrive mid-  
morning to see her baby brother and the nurse would find   
something else that needed her attention in order to give Miss   
Parker some time alone with the child.   
  
"Oh, Miss Parker," the nurse said suddenly just as she got to the   
door. "I may be popping in and out during this visit. We got in   
some new babies just this morning. They're having a tough time   
adjusting."  
  
"Babies?" Miss Parker asks, a knot growing in her stomach. It   
was bad enough she had to grow up here. It was even worse that   
her little brother had to be here. She can't imagine what they   
would need small infants for.   
  
"Yes, Ma'am. Six month old twins," the nurse tells her.  
  
"We'll try to keep it down." She smiles an uneasy smile at the   
nurse as she finally leaves.  
  
Her curiosity getting the better of her, Miss Parker leaves her   
baby brother by a pile of blocks that he eagerly starts chewing   
on. She walks over and peeks into the crib holding the Centre's   
newest acquisitions. Two angelic sleeping faces lay below, a   
little boy and a little girl. Her hand finds it's way inside the   
crib on it's own somehow and she gently strokes a finger along   
the little boy's cheek. She can't resist running her fingers   
through his reddish brown curls, smiling as the soft silkiness   
tickles her hand. Looking back at his face, she notices his big   
brown eyes are now wide open, staring at her inquisitively. For   
a moment, it seems like he can't decide on whether he wants to   
laugh or cry and his eyes start to tear up a little. But instead   
of a wail, he lets out a contented sigh as his little pudgy hand   
grabs onto Miss Parker's finger. Before she can even think about   
it, she has the little boy in her arms and out of the crib. She   
makes her way over to the rocking chair and sits with him.  
  
"Baby," her little brother says in his garbled toddler language.   
Having lost interest in his blocks, he walked over to his big   
sister and the foreign creature in his place on her lap.  
  
"That's right, Tyler," she says to her brother. "It's a baby.   
You wanna say hi?"  
  
"Hi Baby," Tyler says.  
  
"Hi Tyler," Miss Parker says from behind the baby's head, making   
it seem like he was talking to her brother. Both the baby and   
Tyler start to giggle. Their laughs make her smile.  
  
"Momma silly," Tyler laughs, sobering Miss Parker's mood. He was   
doing that all the time now, calling her 'Momma'. For the past   
18 months, she's been the only mother he's ever known, so she can   
understand his confusion. But as much as she would love to be   
his mother, she wasn't. And having him call her that just hurts   
her all the more.  
  
"No Tyler, Lanie. Can you say that? La-nie." She figured she'd   
teach him to call her Lanie, since Mary Elainna was probably too   
hard for a baby. That's the nickname Jarod used to call her.   
"Not Momma. Lanie," she tries again pointing to herself as she   
says it. But she sees that his attention is already elsewhere.  
  
"Look, Momma. 'Nutter baby," Tyler calls excitedly when he   
notices the other baby in the crib.  
  
"I know it's another baby, Tyler. But she's asleep. We have to   
be quiet," she whispers.  
  
"Sleepy Momma," Tyler says with a yawn.   
  
Miss Parker looks at her watch and realizes it's close to his   
naptime. So she goes to lay the baby back in the crib so that   
she can rock her brother to sleep. Just when she walks away from   
the crib, the baby lets out a loud cry, his face instantly   
getting red from the effort.  
  
"What happened?" the nurse asks, slightly out of breath having   
run back into the nursery after hearing the child scream. She   
picks up the baby and tries to calm him down with no success.  
  
"He started crying when I put him back in the crib," Miss Parker   
explains over the child's cries.  
  
"Like I said, they were having trouble adjusting," the nurse says   
accusingly, staring at with Miss Parker with a not so nice look   
in her eyes. "I don't think he appreciated being bothered."  
  
"I didn't bother him," Miss Parker responds in an equally icy   
tone. "He didn't start crying until after I put him down." She   
walks over to the nurse and holds her arms out for the baby, who   
eagerly reaches for her. He stops crying once he's back in Miss   
Parker's arms.  
  
"I guess he just likes you," the nurse reluctantly admits. "He   
hasn't been going to strangers. You're the first. Let me know   
if you have anymore trouble," she mumbles before making her way   
back out of the nursery.  
  
Miss Parker rolls her eyes at the woman's retreating form before   
a tugging at her skirt gets her attention. Tyler's still   
standing there, still looking very sleepy. She grabs his hand   
and walks over to the rocking chair. She holds the baby on one   
side of her lap and allows Tyler to climb up on the other side.   
Before long, both little boys were sleeping peacefully. Unable   
to move, Miss Parker just stays there, enjoying the brief feeling   
of motherhood.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Jarod throws his stuff in a chair next to the door of yet another   
hotel room. He's done more travelling in the past few weeks than   
usual. Nothing seems to be capturing his attention like before.   
He goes from town to town investigating what initially seems like   
worthwhile cases, only for them to turn out to be nothing.   
Really, it was more like he was suffering the effects of burnout   
and was in need of a vacation. Atlanta, Georgia was just the   
place to do that. It wasn't hugely populated, but large enough   
for him to get easily lost. And that's what he needed to be for   
a few days - lost.  
  
He flips the TV on to be background noise as he unpacked his   
meager belongings. Several years on the run and he hasn't   
accumulated many personal belongings. Just a few things that he   
likes to keep close made the move with him from city to city. He   
takes his toiletry kit into the bathroom, and adjusts the volume   
on the TV to hear the news while he's unpacking his shaving kit.  
  
" . . . and there has finally been an arrest in the Burke   
kidnapping case," the anchor starts. The name catches Jarod's   
attention and he leaves the shaving kit in the sink to watch the   
news report. "After weeks of insisting she had nothing to do   
with the disappearance of 6 month old twins Madison and Ryan,   
Special Agent Rachel Burke has finally confessed that she in fact   
did murder her children. . . ."  
  
The rest of the news report goes by unheard by Jarod. Twins.   
Rachel Burke has 6 month old twins. Thinking back to the time he   
spent with the FBI profiler, he realizes it's a distinct   
possibility that those twins are his as well. The timing was   
just about right. He tunes back into the TV to find out more   
details of the story, but sees that they've moved on to something   
else. He turns on his computer and promptly connects to the   
local police department and finds the case.  
  
Two weeks ago, Rachel Burke reported her twins missing. After   
days of searching, police uncovered evidence containing the   
children's blood. They concluded that the children were more   
than likely dead, seeing as how no ransom demands had been made.   
Throughout the entire investigation, Rachel denied any wrongdoing   
on her part. A few days ago, however, that changed. She was   
rushed to the hospital, an apparent suicide attempt. Along with   
the suicide note, there was a journal with details of how she   
killed the children. The police has the journal now as evidence.  
  
Jarod shuts off the computer to avoid risk of being detected   
snooping around the police database. He thinks over the evidence   
and realizes that something wasn't quite right with the   
situation. According to the police report, she hasn't actually   
confessed. They just have a journal and a note supposedly written   
by her. The Rachel he knew wouldn't kill herself. And she   
wouldn't kill her children. Of that he's sure. Chances are if   
he figured out that the children could be his, then it's possible   
someone else may have figured it out as well. Possibly someone   
at the Centre. He had to talk to Rachel as soon as possible. He   
grabs his jacket and heads to the hospital.  
  
  
Northside Hospital  
Atlanta, GA  
  
Jarod peeks his head into the door to Rachel's room. She appears   
to be sleeping, but he sees that she isn't when she turns her   
head in his direction when he enters.  
  
"Hi," he says quietly, shyly looking around the room to avoid   
making immediate eye contact with her.  
  
"What are you doing here, Jarod?" she asks. "The last time I saw   
you was after that night. You were gone the next morning. How   
could you do that to me?"  
  
"I know you're angry . . . " he starts.  
  
"Angry? Actually, I was angry for awhile. For a long time. I   
was hurt. I was confused. But then I got over it. I had to,"   
she says sadly.  
  
"Because of them? The babies?" he asks as delicately as he can.   
But the question still brings tears to her eyes and she's unable   
to speak for a few minutes.  
  
"I'm sorry," she says, wiping away her tears. "They were my   
life. I can't believe they're gone. That I'm responsible for .   
. . "  
  
"No, Rachel. I don't believe that," he tells her. "There's no   
way you were responsible for what happened to them. You couldn't   
do that."  
  
"I didn't think so either, Jarod. But I was so tired all the   
time. And so cranky. They're a handful," she admits. "There   
were times when I didn't know why I was even trying to raise two   
kids on my own."  
  
"Because their deadbeat father left you pregnant," he says   
guiltily. "Rachel, I'm sorry. If I had known . . . "  
  
"But you didn't know, did you? You didn't stick around long   
enough to find out. Besides, sorry's not going to bring them   
back, Jarod," she cries. She wasn't ready to forgive him. She   
couldn't forgive him. Even though he didn't know she was   
pregnant, that still doesn't make the situation any easier.  
  
"Do you really think they're gone? That you . . . "  
  
"Killed my babies?" she asks point blank. "Of course not. But   
the journal was pretty clear and explicit. And it looks like my   
handwriting."  
  
"But do you remember writing it? Or the suicide note?" he asks   
her. "Do you remember trying to kill yourself, Rachel? Or the   
kids?"  
  
"You think this could be a setup?" she asks grabbing onto the   
glimmer of hope he was offering. "That somebody else is   
responsible? But who? Why?"  
  
"Rachel, do you know the reason why I can never stay for very   
long? Why I disappear at the drop of a hat? Why you can't find   
anything about my past? That's because I don't really have one.   
I promised when we first met to tell you about myself. It's past   
time you knew the truth."  
  
"What is it, Jarod? You're scaring me."  
  
"There's this place called the Centre. They stole me when I was   
just a boy because I have special abilities. I'm what they call   
a pretender. A genius with the ability to do anything and become   
anyone. Up until a few years ago, I was held there against my   
will and was made to perform simulations of certain situations,   
the results of which they sold to the highest bidder. More often   
than not, the results of those simulations were used to hurt   
other people. When I found that out, I left. I ran away.   
They've been trying to get me back ever since."  
  
"How is it even possible for a place like that to even exist?"   
she wonders aloud. "Why couldn't the government . . ."  
  
"The government? I hate to tell you this, but that same   
government you work for is one of the Centre's best clients,   
Rachel. Believe me, these people will do anything to get what   
they want. And if they can't have me, I'm sure my children will   
be acceptable."  
  
"You think they have Maddie and Ryan?"  
  
"Those are their names?" he asks quietly, tears starting to form   
in his eyes. "Maddie and Ryan," he repeats, letting the names   
roll off of his tongue before his mood darkens even more. "I   
don't even have a last name to give them."  
  
"Jarod, this is all so unbelievable," she says. "You grew up in   
a place like that? And you're constantly on the run now?"  
  
"It was a terrible place to be, Rachel. And I won't allow our   
children to grow up the way that I did. I'm getting them out of   
there. I swear." He grabs her hand and holds up up to his lips,   
placing a gentle kiss on the back. She didn't deserve to be put   
in the middle of his war with the Centre. It was his   
responsibility to get her and the children out of it, even if it   
meant giving up the one thing that he valued the most - his   
freedom.  
  
To be continued . . . 


	2. High Price of Freedom - Chapter 2

Title - High Price of Freedom  
Author - Nicky  
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)  
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover  
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?  
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Chapter 2  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Miss Parker awakens to the sensation of being watched. Slowly,   
she turns in bed, reaching under her pillow for her gun. In a   
flash, she's sitting up, facing her intruder with the gun pointed   
in his direction.  
  
"Don't shoot. It's just me," he says.  
  
"Jarod? You have to stop surprising me like that. One of these   
days, I'm going to shoot first," she warns. "What time is it?   
What are you doing here?"  
  
"I needed to talk to you. I need your help."  
  
"You need my help?" she laughs incredulously. "You're kidding,   
right? Jarod, what could you possibly be so desperate for that   
you would need my help?"  
  
"A rescue. A woman had her infant twins stolen by the Centre.   
It's my job to get them back," Jarod explains, puposely leaving   
out the fact that he's their father.  
  
"Oh, those twins," she says, instantly sobering when he mentions   
the babies. It's been so sad to see them cry, day in and day   
out. She felt so sorry for them. They were obviously missing   
their family.   
  
"You've seen them?" Jarod asks excitedly.  
  
"A few times. I met them a few days ago when I was visiting my   
little brother Tyler," she tells him. "They're adorable. But so   
sad. I felt bad that they had to be there."  
  
"So, will you help me get them out?" he asks hopefully.  
  
"I don't know about that, Jarod. Stunts like that get you killed   
around the Centre. Look at what happened to my mother when she   
was trying to help you. I don't plan on ending up that way."   
She gets up from her bed and quickly pulls on a robe. She makes   
her way to the door to move this little meeting out of her   
bedroom and into the living room.  
  
"What if you wouldn't have to be there anymore?" he asks quietly.   
She stops in her tracks at this proposal.  
  
"What are you saying, Jarod? You know there's only one way for   
me to be free of that place. That's if I take you in. And   
you've been pretty adamant about not going back to that . . . "  
  
"What if that's exactly what I'm saying?" he interrupts. "You   
help me rescue the twins, and after I return them to their   
mother, you can bring me back. No hassles. No tricks. No   
escaping."  
  
She sits rather ungracefully on the bed next to her, her legs no   
longer able to support her. This was a proposition she never   
expected to receive from Jarod. And by the look on his face, he   
was completely serious.  
  
"How do I know I can trust you?" she asks, knowing the question   
was pointless. She trusted Jarod. In a sick, twisted kind of   
way, that was the one truth in her life, her trust of Jarod.  
  
"Oh ye of little faith," he says with a small smile. "You know   
you can trust me. But I didn't expect you to take my word for   
it. So I'll leave this with you." He reaches down next to him   
picks up a silver case that was on the floor next to his   
chair. She must have missed seeing it in the darkness of the   
room.  
  
"The DSA's?" she asks.  
  
"Just the player. After we make sure the children are safe with   
their mother, I'll give you the key to a safety deposit box that   
contains the DSA's." He pauses to let it all soak in. "I've   
thought through this, Miss Parker. If you agree to help me, then   
I won't back down on this deal. You have my word that I'll let   
you take me back to the Centre. You'll be free. And you'll have   
the DSA's in case there's more bargaining you need to do with the   
Centre."  
  
"Why, Jarod? Why are you doing this? Giving up your freedom for   
these children? For me?"  
  
"Is it a deal or not?" he asks impatiently, purposely avoiding   
her question. He looks into her eyes to convey how serious this   
whole situation is. He can see that she's thinking about the   
matter, trying to figure out why it's so important to him. But   
also trying to decide if her freedom was worth risking her life   
over.  
  
"Okay. I agree. When do we do this?" She asks, trying not to   
smile at the adorable and grateful grin that's now spreading   
across Jarod's face.  
  
"As soon as you can get dressed," he tells her.  
  
"Alright, then. Get out of here and let me get changed," she   
orders, shooing him out of her room.  
  
"You sure you won't need any help zipping or buttoning   
something?" he says with a suggestive wink and leer.  
  
"Out!" she says a bit louder, but unable to hide her amusement.  
  
"Okay, okay, I'm leaving," he laughs a little, walking to the   
door. Just as his hand reaches the doorknob, he turns around   
once more. "Miss Parker?"  
  
"Yes, Jarod," she sighs impatiently.  
  
"Thanks," he says with a shy smile. "Thanks for doing this."  
  
"You're welcome," she smiles back.   
  
For a moment they stand there, not remembering anything that's   
happened between them the past few years. Instead, it was almost   
as if they were looking at each other when they were children,   
when they used to mean everything to each other.  
  
"You should get dressed," Jarod whispers, breaking the moment.   
"I'll leave now." He steps into the hallway outside her room,   
shutting the door behind him.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
An hour later finds Jarod and Miss Parker in Jarod's Nissan X-  
Terra on the way to the Centre. The trip is a quiet one, each   
thinking about how this one night will inevitably change their   
lives.   
  
"Jarod?" she asks, breaking the silence.  
  
"Yes?" He looks over at her, waiting on her question. When she   
doesn't say anything he turns his sight back to the road ahead of   
them.  
  
"Nothing," she says quietly, changing her mind about asking him   
again why this is so important to him. He'll tell her when he's   
ready, she assumes. "We're just about there," she says instead,   
even though she wants to know so badly what's making him do this.   
Why after all this time would he give up his freedom.  
  
He shuts off the lights and rolls to a stop next to a wooded area   
about a mile from the Centre. Instead of taking the main road to   
the Centre, they figure it would be better to cut through the   
woods and enter through the storm tunnel on the west end of the   
building. The tunnel goes on for about a mile before leading to   
the airvents that will eventually take them to the nursery.  
  
"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asks her one more time to   
be sure. "It could be dangerous."  
  
"Jarod, it'll be faster for me to show you where the babies are.   
Plus, you won't be able to carry them both out at one time," she   
rationalizes.  
  
"Alright then. Let's go," he says, opening his door. She does   
the same and meets him on the other side of the car.  
  
They move quickly and quietly through the forest, keeping a   
watchful eye out for alarm triggers and cameras. They manage   
make it to the entrance undetected and sneak inside. The trip   
through the tunnel was uneventful as well and soon they find   
themselves at an opening with several airvents going off in   
different directions.  
  
"Which way do we go?" she asks him.  
  
"This one," he says, pointing to the vent to the left. "It'll   
lead us to your office. I'll wait there while you go get the   
babies and bring them back to me."  
  
"Why can't we just take the vents to the nursery?" she wonders.  
  
"Because they have a special ventilation system in there. The   
air vents don't share the same passage ways as the other air   
vents in the building. It's supposed to deliver purer air to the   
children," he explains. He reaches up to pull off the vent cover   
and lifts himself into the vent. He reaches to give her a hand   
and pulls her up as well.  
  
"Make sure to take off their clothes before you leave the   
nursery," he says once they reach her office. He pulls off his   
backpack and pulls out a bundle of clothes and a couple of Snugli   
carriers. "We'll redress them in here. I don't want to take the   
risk of tracking devices being in the clothing."  
  
She nods her head in understanding and eases out of her door. It   
was the middle of the night, so she didn't expect to see anyone.   
But still, the quiet, empty halls were eerie and a bit unnerving.   
It doesn't take long to get to the nursery. And just as Jarod   
suspected, they babies were sound asleep. Taking them this time   
of night offered less risk of them crying. She quickly works and   
removes their sleepers, leaving them in just their diapers. She   
grabs them both securely in her arms and makes her way back to   
the office.  
  
"What are you doing?" she whispers to Jarod when she returns. He   
was sitting behind her desk messing with her computer.  
  
"You need to leave a voice mail message for Broots and Sydney.   
Tell them you found a lead on me and you're on your way to pick   
me up. I was using the computer to change the system time in the   
database. That way, they'll think the call came in earlier than   
it really did. I've already arranged for you to have been 'seen'   
on a commercial flight to Tulsa. You'll have an alibi for the   
time the babies went missing. By the time they figure it all   
out, you'll be back here with me." He stops his explanation to   
take one of the babies from her, quickly pulling the new pajamas   
on her. Miss Parker does the same with the other baby.  
  
"You've thought of everything, haven't you?" she asks.  
  
"Lives are at stake, Miss Parker. I have to think of everything   
or somebody dies," he says seriously.  
  
"This is more than just another pretend for you, isn't it Jarod?   
This is personal." She watches him gently place the baby in the   
carrier and fasten it close to his body.   
  
"Let's go," he whispers through a raspy voice, ignoring her   
question. "We need to get out of here."  
  
He climbs up into the air vent and helps Miss Parker do the same.   
An hour later, they find themselves back at the car where they   
first started. Jarod takes the babies and gets them strapped   
into the car seats while Miss Parker drives.  
  
"Where are we going, Jarod?"  
  
"Just stay on the interstate for a few hours," he says with a   
yawn. "I'll let you know when we get closer." He closes his   
eyes and leans his head to the window, allowing sleep to take   
over for the first time in days.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"This is it. Home sweet home. At least for the next few days."   
Jarod takes the keys from the ignition and opens his door,   
eagerly stretching his legs from the long trip. They had to stop   
for gas and then again once more along the way to change the   
really stinky diapers, but for the most part, they had everything   
they needed. The babies slept for the majority of the trip. But   
now, they were starting to get cranky having spent the past 7   
hours in a car.  
  
"Let's get them inside," Miss Parker suggests. "If they feel   
anything like I do, then they're not going to be in a good mood."  
  
"I'm sorry about all this," Jarod apologizes. "I shouldn't have   
put you in the middle of it. I just . . . had to get them out."  
  
Miss Parker waits on him to continue, but it soon becomes obvious   
that he's done talking. She eases Ryan from his car seat and   
takes the baby in the house.   
  
Once inside, she sees that Jarod was really prepared for this.   
Several packages of disposable diapers lined half the wall   
opposite the door. Other items necessary for the babies were   
scattered about the room.   
  
"You really did think of everything," she says as she sets Ryan   
down inside one of the playpens, dropping in a toy for him to   
play with. "How long did you plan all of this?" She reaches to   
take Madison from Jarod to place her in the play pen as well, but   
Jarod is reluctant to give her up.  
  
"I'll just hold onto her for a little while longer," he says,   
trying hard to hold back tears. This was the first chance he had   
to actually just sit and look at them - his children. He was   
struck by Madison's beauty. She looked like Rachel, he decided,   
with her red hair and porcelain skin. Her big green eyes scanned   
his face and instantly decided he was friendly. She rewards him   
with a wide, toothless grin.  
  
"She's perfect, don't you think?" he asks Miss Parker with   
complete awe. "I mean, she's got all ten fingers and toes and   
everything." He can't help but smile at the little angel   
squirming around his arms. His smile fades as the baby lets out   
a loud cry.  
  
"Let me take her," Miss Parker offers. "She doesn't like being   
held as much as Ryan does." She takes Madison and places her in   
the crib, picking up Ryan in exchange. She takes the boy to   
Jarod's waiting arms and watches as he gets the same awe struck   
look on his face as he did when he held Madison. It was almost   
as if her were a proud father holding his children for the first   
time. Miss Parker shakes that thought from her head, dismissing   
it as absurd.  
  
"You seem to get along with them well," Jarod comments.  
  
"Like I said before, I spent the past few days getting to know   
them. I noticed that Ryan likes to be held a lot while Madison   
prefers to stay to herself." Miss Parker coos at the baby and   
kisses his small baby feet. She makes silly faces and noises at   
the baby for a few minutes before turning her attention back to   
Jarod who's now staring at her with utter fascination. "What are   
you looking at me like that for?"  
  
"Look at you. I never would have imagined you going all soft   
over a baby," Jarod laughs. "But here you are. This mothering   
thing is natural for you."  
  
"Spending an hour a day with them during my lunch break is one   
thing, Jarod. It's hardly what I'd call 'mothering'. I don't   
know what I'm going to do over the next few days if I'm going to   
be around them full time," she admits. "What is the plan   
anyway?"  
  
"Their mother should be here soon. I left instructions for her   
to meet us here. After that, we all stay here to make sure we   
weren't followed. Then, I'm all yours," he says, waggling his   
eyebrows suggestively to make light of the situation. But they   
both knew what she really had in store for him.  
  
"Well as fascinating as that plan is, Jarod, it put the baby to   
sleep. Why don't you take them to whichever room the nursery is   
going to be and I'll try to put away some of this stuff." She   
watches Jarod get up with ease and take the baby up the stairs.   
He was the true natural with the kids, she noticed. When he   
disappears from her view, she turns her attention to Madison in   
the playpen.  
  
"Okay, little lady. How about we get this place cleaned up?"   
She smiles at the slobbery grin Madison flashes her, getting lost   
momentarily in the sweet innocence in the little girl's eyes.   
She's shocked out of her daze by the sounds coming from outside.   
A car door slams and she instantly goes on alert, reaching for   
her gun.  
  
To be continued . . . 


	3. High Price of Freedom - Chapter 3

Title - High Price of Freedom  
Author - Nicky  
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)  
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover  
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?  
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Chapter 3  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
The front door opens and she prays a quick prayer that Madison   
doesn't cry out, startling the intruder.  
  
"Stop where you are," she hisses. "Don't go any further." Her   
gun is up and her body is between the intruder and the baby,   
trying to shield her from any harm.  
  
"FBI," the woman at the door says. "I just came for the babies."   
She reaches in her pocket for something, but Miss Parker stops   
her, not sure what she was looking for.  
  
"Keep your hands where I can see them," Miss Parker orders   
loudly. Her shouts alert Jarod and he comes running down the   
stairs.  
  
"What's going on down here?" He stops in his tracks when he sees   
the woman at the door. "Rachel?"  
  
"Jarod, where are my babies?" she cries, running to Jarod.  
  
"I'm sorry, Rachel. I didn't think you'd be here this soon.   
This is Miss Parker," Jarod introduces. "She helped me rescue   
the twins. Miss Parker, this is Agent Rachel Burke. She's the   
twins' mother."  
  
"Sorry about the gun," Miss Parker apologizes, somewhat   
embarrassed. She puts the gun away and sticks out her hand to   
Rachel. "Nice to meet you."  
  
"Where are my babies?" Rachel asks again, ignoring Miss Parker's   
gesture.  
  
"Madison's in the playpen," Miss Parker says, stepping out of the   
way. "Jarod just took Ryan up. He's asleep, but I'll go get him   
if you want."  
  
But she sees that Rachel has already scooped up her baby girl   
into her arms and is desperately looking for Ryan. Jarod leads   
the way as the woman rushes to get up to her other child.   
Following slower behind them, Miss Parker finally catches up to   
the teary reunion in the nursery. She suddenly feels like an   
outsider intruding on a private family moment. Miss Parker turns   
to go back downstairs, determined to finish the cleaning job she   
started earlier. She definitely had questions for both Rachel   
and Jarod, but it wasn't anything that couldn't wait until later.   
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Miss Parker is putting the last of the stuff away when she hears   
someone descending the steps. Turning to look that way, she   
see's that it's Jarod.  
  
"They're all asleep," Jarod tells her.  
  
"I'm sure she was happy to be reunited with her children," Miss   
Parker says, trying to make conversation, but not really knowing   
what to say. "They sure were happy to see her. I don't think   
I've seen Madison smile that much. She was always the serious   
one. But I guess she was just missing her mom." She nervously   
picks at an invisible spot on her pants, waiting on Jarod to tell   
her what's really going on. Because by the looks of things in   
that room earlier, there was more between him and Rachel than he   
was letting on.  
  
"I know you're curious about this whole thing," he says quietly,   
staring out of the window. "Why don't we get out of here. Take   
a walk. Check to make sure things are secure." Without turning   
to look at her or to see if she was following, he walks out the   
door and stands on the porch. A few seconds later he hears her   
behind him.  
  
"What's going on, Jarod? How do you know this woman?" she   
starts. She figured she'd just come out and ask.  
  
"This starts a few years ago when I worked on the kidnapping case   
with the FBI. This guy would take these kids and brainwash them,   
making them believe they were his sons. The ones that were   
considered 'worthy' became his foot soldiers so to speak. The   
rest were . . . disposed of. During that case, I worked with a   
profiler named Samantha Waters. We worked well together. But,   
when the case was over, I disappeared. I guess maybe a year   
later, I had the occassion to work with the same group in the   
FBI. I was expecting to be working with Samantha, but she was   
gone. Rachel was her replacement. I worked so well with   
Samantha, that working with Rachel was a big let down at first.   
Things were difficult with Rachel. We were like oil and water -   
we didn't mix at all. But, she was passionate about a lot of   
things. About her job. About the case. About me." He stops   
his narrative there and begins to pay more attention to the   
surroundings.  
  
"So you two had a relationship," Miss Parker says, not really   
sure how it makes her feel. A little jealous. A little   
surprised.  
  
"I wouldn't call it that. Rachel and I were a bad fit from the   
start," is his only answer. "She wanted me. I liked being   
wanted. I felt like, for once, I was the one in control of   
things. But afterwards . . . I couldn't even stay the whole   
night. I was gone before she got up the next morning and didn't   
look back."  
  
"When was all this?" she asks with a shaky voice. She was trying   
to hold back her feelings, but it was hard to ignore the   
blatantly obvious question on both of their minds.  
  
"I'm sure you can guess the 'when', Miss Parker," he says with a   
completely joyless laugh. "I'm going to say this all happened   
about 15 months ago."  
  
"So, they're yours," she concludes. "Madison and Ryan are your   
kids."  
  
He just nods his head, unable to speak. He's only known for a   
few days himself and he was still in shock over the whole idea.   
He can only imagine the surprise and confusion Miss Parker is   
feeling right now.  
  
"That's why you were so desperate to get them out of the Centre,"   
she rambles. "That's probably why the Centre took them in the   
first place. They knew they were your children. And to keep   
them safe, you're giving yourself up. That's really why you're   
going back to the Centre."  
  
"Miss Parker, to tell you the truth, I don't know what I'm doing.   
All I know is that the Centre kidnapped my children. I had to   
get them out," he says, finally turning towards her, finally   
looking her in the eye. "And I couldn't have done it without   
you. You put your life on the line to help me. I don't know how   
to thank you for that. So I may have agreed to go back to the   
Centre with you to protect the kids, but it was also to protect   
you. If they ever find out what you did, you wouldn't be safe.   
You can't be there. Taking me back would guarantee your freedom   
and safety."  
  
"But what is it that *you* want, Jarod? To never know your   
children? To never make a family for them?" she asks.  
  
"I honestly don't know what kind of family Rachel and I could   
make for them," he sighs. "I don't love her. I don't even know   
her. Sleeping with her was a mistake. But my children aren't.   
I already love them with my whole heart. I'd do anything for   
them."  
  
"Jarod what if I didn't take you back?" she ponders. "What if   
you and Rachel and the kids just . . . ."  
  
"No. Absolutely not. They'd kill you, Parker. You know that."   
He steps towards her and gently cups her cheeks with his hands.   
"I can survive that place knowing my babies are safe. Rachel's   
an FBI agent. She can take care of them now that she knows that   
the Centre wants them. But there's no way I could live knowing   
you were in any kind of danger."  
  
She closes her eyes and allows his warm breath to wash over her   
face. After a few moments of enjoying his closeness, she falls   
into his arms and buries her head in his neck. He fully encloses   
her in his embrace and holds her tightly.  
  
"Jarod," she gasps, pulling slightly away to look into his eyes.   
"I don't know what to say."  
  
"You don't have to say anything," he whispers, tracing her bottom   
lip with the tip of this thumb. He leans forward, slowing   
creeping closer to her, moving in for a kiss, but doesn't quite   
make it.  
  
"Jarod!" Rachel calls from the porch. She was holding a   
screaming twin in each arm and wasn't looking too happy herself.   
"A little help, please."  
  
Jarod lets out a disappointed groan, resting his forehead against   
Miss Parker's. "I should go help her."  
  
"Go," she gently orders. "We can finish our . . . um . . .   
*discussion* later," she says with a smile.  
  
"Later," he says with a final sigh. "It's a date." He flashes   
her his own patented grin before jogging back towards the cabin.   
He takes one of the babies from Rachel's arms and walks inside.   
  
Rachel looks back over her shoulder at Miss Parker and shoots her   
a cocky glare. It was a look warning Miss Parker not to mess   
with the family she was trying to form.  
  
Miss Parker stares back, shooting Rachel a warning of her own.   
Right then and there she realized that her and Jarod belonged   
together and that's the way it was going to be, despite Rachel   
and the children. And she wasn't going to give him up, not now   
after all these years. If it was a fight Rachel wanted, then it   
was a fight she was going to get.   
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Over the next few days, much of the same thing went on. The   
twins and their safety was the top priority of the adults.   
Jarod wanted to spend as much time with them as possible in the   
short time he would have to get to know them. Rachel used that   
to her advantage. Any time he spent with the babies was also   
time spent with her. Which didn't make Miss Parker very happy.   
She didn't get to spend any time with Jarod alone. Today, she   
was determined to change that.  
  
"Jarod," Miss Parker calls one afternoon when things were quiet.   
The kids were napping peacefully and Rachel was in the kitchen   
preparing more bottles. "How about we take a walk or something.   
We've been cooped up in the house for days. And the kids are   
asleep right now, so . . . "  
  
"You don't have to ask me twice," he says with a big grin. He   
jumps up from his spot on the floor where he was folding the   
babies' freshly laundered clothes. He grabs her hand and heads   
for the door.  
  
"Jarod, was that one of the babies?" Rachel asks, poking her head   
from the kitchen. "I thought I heard one of them crying."  
  
"I didn't hear anything, Rachel. Maybe you're just being overly   
sensitive," Miss Parker manages to say through clenched teeth.   
She had been very patient with the situation this entire time.   
And it may be selfish, but she just wanted a minute alone with   
Jarod, away from Rachel and the kids.  
  
"Well, *you're* not their mother. I am," Rachel snaps. "When   
you become a parent, you'll realize that the safety and comfort   
of your children are the only things that matter. Isn't that   
right, Jarod?"  
  
"Why don't I just go up and check on them," he offers, giving   
Miss Parker's hand a gentle squeeze before letting it go. "I'll   
be right back and then we can go for that walk." He flashes her   
a reassuring smile before going up the stairs to the nursery.  
  
"When are you going to give it up, Miss Parker? Family is the   
most important thing to Jarod. The twins and I are his family   
now. I know you helped him rescue the kids and I'm grateful for   
that. But I think it'll be safe enough for you to leave now.   
You're just in the way," Rachel says.  
  
"That's not the plan," Miss Parker tells her. "I leave when it's   
time to leave. And Jarod's coming with me."  
  
"I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that you can   
seduce him and break us up. But that's not going to happen. I   
know that you want him, but you can't have him. I won't let   
you," Rachel vows.  
  
"You don't know anything," Miss Parker growls, standing close to   
the other woman's face. "You don't know anything about me or   
about Jarod. He's not stupid. Don't you think he can see   
through what you're doing? You're using these children to   
control him. You're no better than the people who stole the   
twins. You think that's going to make him love you? Well,   
you're wrong. He's never going to love you. It's not even   
possible."  
  
"What makes you so sure of that? Because of you? Because you   
think he loves you?" Rachel asks with a laugh. "I'm sure that   
whatever you feel you can offer him, it doesn't compare to being   
in his children's lives."  
  
"Ladies," Jarod says from the steps. Both women look up, shocked   
to see him standing there. "Is there something going on here?"  
  
"I was just telling Rachel that we have some unfinished   
business," Miss Parker says, back in her Ice Queen mode.   
Whatever she was starting to feel for Jarod, she couldn't allow   
it to get in the way. Because Rachel was right about one thing.   
She wasn't going to be able to be with Jarod, no matter what.   
Whether he stayed with Rachel or went back to the Centre. It was   
time she faced that.  
  
"And I was telling her that it was no longer necessary for her to   
be here with us, Jarod," Rachel says. "I think we can safely take   
the babies away from here. Now thank your little friend for   
helping us and let's take our children home."  
  
"That's not going to happen, Rachel," Jarod tells her. "Miss   
Parker is right. There's more to consider here. And it's about   
time we started thinking about those things."  
  
"Jarod,you're not telling me that you would give up the chance to   
raise your children to be with her, are you? Are you in love   
with her? Because it certainly didn't feel like it to me that   
night you were with me. The night we made those children."  
  
"Don't go there, Rachel," Jarod warns, ignoring her question. He   
chances a glance in Miss Parker's direction and sees that her   
moist eyes were avoiding looking at him. "Don't start this."  
  
"Don't start what, Jarod? Don't I have a right to know why   
you're ditching me and our children yet again?" Rachel yells.   
"Is it all for her?"  
  
"You have no idea what's going on, Rachel," Miss Parker growls.   
"Don't you see that there's only one way for your children to be   
safe? And unfortunately, that means he can't be with either of   
us."  
  
"What's she talking about, Jarod? Tell her to leave and then we   
can get on with our lives," Rachel demands.  
  
"I can't do that. She's right," Jarod confesses. "There's only   
one solution to this. For me to go back there."  
  
Rachel looks at Jarod in disbelief. Then she glances over at   
Miss Parker in time to see her flick one renegade tear from her   
cheek.  
  
"Oh, I see what's going on," Rachel says. "This is just an   
excuse to bail on me and our children again. Jarod, you should   
have at least found someone believable. You expect me to believe   
you'd leave me for her? That you'd leave your children for her?   
Someone so cold. So icy. Probably frigid." Rachel smiles   
inwardly at the spark of anger she sees flash in Miss Parker's   
eyes. But it wasn't enough. She pushes even further. "Look at   
her, Jarod. What does she have that I don't? What does she know   
about you that I don't? How could she ever satisfy you like I .   
. ."   
  
The loud snap of Miss Parker's hand striking Rachel's face drops   
a deadly silence on the entire room. The flaming red hand print   
appears instantly on the woman's milky skin. Rachel covers her   
stinging skin with her cool hand and lifts her eyes to Miss   
Parker, a triumphant gleam in her eyes. Instantly Miss Parker   
realizes the game the woman was playing with her. And how she   
walked right into the trap.  
  
"You little conniving . . ." Miss Parker growls.  
  
"Parker!" Jarod yells, trying to calm the woman down. "That's   
enough." He stands facing Miss Parker, his back to Rachel so he   
misses the little smirk playing on her lips.   
  
Miss Parker sees it, though. And she realizes to herself that   
Jarod was right. Enough is enough. It was time to end this   
little game once and for all. She slips into her huntress mode,   
cutting off any emotions she may have been feeling. Emotions   
that had clouded her judgment. She reaches behind her and pulls   
out her weapon, the only friend she's truly been able to count   
on.  
  
To be continued . . . 


	4. High Price of Freedom - Chapter 4

Title - High Price of Freedom  
Author - Nicky  
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)  
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover  
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?  
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Chapter 4  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
"You're right, Jarod," she says icily. "I've had enough, too.   
I've had enough of you, your little girlfriend and this whole big   
mess you dragged me into." Out of the corner of her eye, she can   
see Rachel move slightly as if she were going for her gun as   
well. Miss Parker swings the gun in that direction, keeping one   
eye on Jarod as well. "Keep your hands where I can see them,   
Rachel."  
  
Miss Parker reaches down into the holster strapped around her   
ankles and reveals another gun. She takes it out and points that   
one at Jarod.  
  
"This ankle holster's a neat little contraption, Rachel. I   
should get one too." Miss Parker glares at the woman. This   
time, she's the one with the triumphant gleam in her eyes seeing   
the fear in Rachel's. Rachel's countenance instantly falls,   
realizing that Miss Parker had her gun.  
  
"Jarod, go get the cuffs," she orders.  
  
"Parker, what's . . "  
  
"Jarod, now!" she screams, taking the safety off one of the gun   
to ensure them she was serious. He obeys, getting back   
instantly, looking to her for the next set of instructions.  
  
"Cuff her," she barks, gesturing towards Rachel with one of the   
guns. "Make sure she can't get out."  
  
"Why are you doing this?" Rachel screams, more from irriation   
than from actual fear.  
  
"Just shut up," Miss Parker yells back. "Before I have him gag   
you as well."  
  
"Jarod, do you see what you threw our future away for? She's a   
lunatic," Rachel says, despite Miss Parker's warning. "She's   
probably going to kill us."  
  
"You're tempting me, Rachel." Miss Parker moves closer and puts   
the gun to the other woman's head.  
  
"Parker," Jarod says softly, placing his hands around the hand   
Miss Parker's holding the gun in. For a brief moment, he's able   
to catch her eyes with his own. She softens visibly in his   
grasp.  
  
"Don't do this. She's cuffed. And she's not going anywhere.   
Not without the kids." He's able to slip the gun from her hands,   
removing the clip and placing them both on the counter. Miss   
Parker   
follows suit and places Rachel's gun back into the holster around   
her ankle.   
Jarod takes Miss Parker's hand again and leads her over to the   
couch,   
just out of Rachel's earshot.  
  
"We have to get back to Blue Cove now, Jarod," Miss Parker says,   
avoiding his eyes so he won't see the tears building up. "I   
don't want to take you back, but . . . "  
  
"I know. We made a deal. I made a promise to you."  
  
"Forget about the deal. I would let you walk out of here with   
Rachel and the babies if that were possible. As much as it would   
hurt me, I'd tell you to forget about me and to go raise your   
children with her. But I can't do that."  
  
"You'd miss me, wouldn't you?" he teases, trying to lighten the   
moment. But she stays serious, stroking his cheek with her   
fingers, as if she were trying to memorize his face.  
  
"Like I'd miss my heartbeat," she whispers. "But I'd do it for   
you anyway. Unfortunately it's too late for that option. I've   
been gone too long to go back without you. They'd kill me. And   
then do God only knows what to Tyler. I can't leave him in there   
all alone. I can't believe I've been gone from him for this   
long. He must be so scared."  
  
"Your little brother," Jarod suddenly realizes. "I forgot about   
him. I didn't realize you two were so close. Parker, we never   
should have done this. I never would have asked you to   
jeopardize his safety." He pulls her into his arms, forgetting   
all about the cuffed woman standing a few feet away from them.  
  
"This was my choice, Jarod." She reluctantly pulls out of his   
embrace. "I thought this was my ticket to freedom. For me and   
Tyler. I never thought I'd . . . " Miss Parker bites her lip to   
stop her flow of words. She couldn't admit that. Not now. Not   
like this. She couldn't tell him that somewhere in the middle of   
this little adventure she fell back in love with him. She   
couldn't reveal that she can't stop thinking about the pure love   
they shared as children and how that love has returned full   
force. She couldn't tell him how the past week has reminded her   
of her childhood dream to marry him and move far away from the   
Centre with their perfect babies. But that couldn't be now.   
There was love. And there were children. But the protection of   
those children prevented the rest of her dream from coming true.  
  
"Never thought you'd what, Parker?" Jarod is curious.  
  
"Nevermind," she sighs, trying to paste on a reassuring smile.   
"Why don't you go get the kids and strap them in the car. We   
need to go."  
  
"Where are we going? Where are we taking Rachel and the kids?"  
  
"To my place," she says after a minute to think. "Maybe between   
now and then, we can combine our genius and come up with some   
other alternative."  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Jarod looks up from road for a second to take a glance around the   
car. Next to him, Rachel was dozing, her head leaning against   
the window. In the back, Miss Parker had situated herself   
between Madison and Ryan to make sure Rachel would behave.   
There's no way Rachel would do anything to endanger their lives.   
She had no choice but to comply with Miss Parker's wishes.  
  
What a mess he'd gotten himself in. For a grown man, he has   
certainly done some dumb things. Starting with ever sleeping   
with Rachel Burke in the first place. He doesn't even know why   
he did it. She wanted to talk that night. Talk about his past.   
Things he didn't want to discuss. So he seduced her instead.   
Then slipped out the next morning, never looking back.  
  
Now, he has two children to protect. And to rescue them from the   
Centre, he's sacrificed his life to that very place. Knowing   
Miss Parker couldn't resist the chance at freedom, he engaged in   
one last game with her. A game she couldn't lose. She'd be able   
to take him in, earn her freedom, and have the SIM's as leverage.   
He just never counted on falling in love with her. And now the   
fact that he'll never see her again was tearing at his heart.   
She'll be free. She'll take him in and then walk away, getting   
as far away from a place she's been held prisoner her entire   
life.  
  
He looks in his rear view mirror again to try to catch another   
glimpse of her. Through the darkness, he's able to make out the   
wetness of tears on her cheek and he instantly starts to worry.  
  
"Lanie, what is it?" he asks. Her eyes pop open wide in shock.   
She can't believe he remembered what he used to call her.   
Hearing that name from his lips is somewhat comforting.  
  
"Do you remember when we were kids?" Her voice was low and   
gravelly, as if she had been crying for hours. "That day when we   
first met?"  
  
"Yeah," he smiles. "The best day of my life."  
  
She gasps outloud, almost in tears at his words and is stunned   
into silence for a few moments.  
  
"I loved you so much back then," she says finally. She pauses   
when this time, it's Jarod who gasps. "At first, you were just a   
distraction for me. My father used to give me trinkets and toys   
to keep me out of his hair. I usually got bored with them after   
awhile. I guess that's what he was counting on with you. They'd   
be able to observe you with me for whatever little studies they   
were doing. And I'd have a new toy for the summer. But I never   
got bored with you. And after my mother died, you became the   
most important person in my life."  
  
"Lanie, you were the only good thing in my life. That place was   
. . . . horrible beyond words. But I was able to survive with   
you there. And knowing that you'll be safe, I think I'll be able   
to survive again."  
  
"I'm sorry, Jarod," she whispers. The tears begin to fall again   
as she thinks about the unwinnable situation they're in. "I'm   
sorry for making you go back there. But I have to. I have to go   
back for Tyler. I can't just leave him there. And I can't go   
back without you," she tries to make some sense of their   
situation.  
  
"I know. You never would have gotten into this if I hadn't   
promised you your freedom," he says.  
  
"That's all I've ever wanted," she says. "To be free. But I   
always thought I'd be free . . . . with you."  
  
One of the babies starts fussing and Miss Parker has to settle   
him down, essentially ending the conversation. Which was good   
for Miss Parker. Too many implications were being made that   
needed to be dealt with. She was glad for a brief respite.  
  
"We're almost there, little one," she coos to Ryan, gently easing   
him back to sleep. Jarod watches the whole exchange as much as   
he can while still concentrating on driving. Seeing her with the   
kids always amazed him. There was a gentleness in her that never   
got to come out, except for when she was with the kids. Her   
whole face lit up and it looked like she was meant to be a mother. A   
mother to his children. He pushes that thought back   
down, along with the tears that seemed to accompany it. There   
was nothing to be done about that now. He's made his bed, with   
the wrong woman unfortunately. Now, he has to lie in it.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Rachel opens her eyes when the car comes to a stop. For the past   
hour, she pretended to be asleep and learned some interesting   
things about Jarod and Miss Parker from their conversation. For   
one thing, Rachel had no clue they shared such a connected past.   
She realizes now that she never really stood a chance with Jarod.   
A love like the one they described doesn't just go away. She   
realizes now that she was nothing to Jarod. Just a blip on his   
radar. He's giving up his life for this woman. He's giving up   
his chance to raise his children for this woman. And she didn't   
deserve him.   
  
She works for the very same place that took her children. They   
made a habit out of kidnapping children and holding them hostage   
to run tests on them. Rachel can't understand why Jarod would   
want to protect that woman. A woman who's hunted him like an   
animal for years just to take him back to that torture palace.   
It's like an extremely severe case of Stockholm Syndrome. He was   
held so long that he sympathizes with his captor. This woman.   
This *Miss Parker*. A sick psychological terrorist that needs   
to be stopped. And it's going to be Rachel's pleasure to stop   
her. A little grin spreads across her face as she realizes she's   
not yet out of the game. No Miss Parker - no need for Jarod feel   
he has to protect her by going back to that place. He'll be free   
to come with her and the babies. It's so simple. She doesn't   
know how she didn't think of it in the first place. Get rid of   
Miss Parker and Jarod will be hers.  
  
"What are you smiling about?" Jarod asks, noticing the 'cat that   
ate the canary' look on Rachel's face.  
  
"Nothing," she claims. "I just never pictured Miss Parker in a   
rustic little cabin in the woods. She seems more the penthouse   
type."  
  
"I've lived in this house all of my life," Miss Parker snaps.   
"It's pretty much all I have left of my mother."  
  
Her words bring silence to them all. Rachel almost feels guilty   
for teasing about it. But the guilt is quickly pushed away when   
she sees Jarod and Miss Parker each scoop up one of the babies   
and take them inside. The anger starts to grow again with each   
clank of the handcuffs. Every welt left by the cuffs on her   
wrist fuels her resolve to take care of this Parker situation   
once and for all.  
  
They all move inside and Miss Parker finally allows for the cuffs   
to come off. Jarod hands Madison over to Rachel and then goes   
outside to finish unloading the car. Miss Parker and Rachel   
handle the tasks of bathing, feeding, and getting the kids ready   
for bed. Miss Parker is amused by Ryan's seemingly unending   
quest to get his foot into his mouth. He was so determined and   
she couldn't help but watch him in amazement.  
  
"He gets that look from Jarod," she comments, catching Rachel   
slightly off guard. "His little eyebrows all scrunched up like   
that. He's trying to hard to get to his foot. It's like he's   
not going to give up until he figures it all out. Jarod looked   
like that all the time when he was younger when he couldn't   
figure out one of his problems."  
  
"So you two have known each other for a long time?" Rachel asks,   
although she knows the answer. She learned all she needed to   
know from their conversation earlier.  
  
"Jarod came to the Centre when he was just a boy. Not quite this   
young, though," Miss Parker says with a loving smile in Ryan's   
direction, tickling the boy on his belly. "We've known each   
other for about as long as I can remember. We've been together   
for a long time Rachel. Longer than you may have realized.   
He's been a part of my life for . . . forever. And I'm trying   
to come up with a way for things to stay that way. Despite you.   
Despite these children. Despite the Centre. Can't you see it?   
Jarod can never be a part of your life. Not the way you want him   
to be."  
  
"And you think that's because of you?" Rachel asks incredulously.  
  
"I know it is," Miss Parker responds with absolute certainty.   
"I've tried to deny it for a long time, but as cliche as this   
sounds, Jarod and I were made for each other. Our lives are so   
interconnected that I know I couldn't live without him. And   
frankly, I don't even want to try. If you fight me on this, then   
you'll lose." Miss Parker finishes up dressing Ryan and lifts   
him up to her shoulder. She shoots Rachel one last warning glare   
before taking him down to Jarod.  
  
"There's my boy," he says with pride holding his arms out for the   
baby.  
  
"Did you get all the stuff inside?" Miss Parker asks, leading   
them out to the back deck. He nods his head while opening the   
door for her.   
  
"Then why didn't you come up and referee the latest bout between   
me and your little chickadee?"  
  
"Had to make a few phone calls. You know how Syd worries."   
Jarod settles on the swing with the baby in one arm and throws   
his other arm around Miss Parker. "So this latest fight couldn't   
have been that bad. I didn't hear any screaming this time. No   
gunshots. No blood. I'd say you two were learning to get   
along."  
  
"Funny," she chuckles. "You can give up on us ever getting   
along. You know how selfish I am. I'm not going to sit back and   
let her take what's rightfully mine."  
  
"Rightfully yours? Why am I starting to feel like a slab of   
meat?" he laughs.  
  
"Whatever. You know you love this. Isn't this every man's   
fantasy? Having two women fighting over him. I'm surprised you   
haven't built us a mud wrestling pit."  
  
"Ooh, good idea, Parker. I didn't think the fantasy of two women   
fighting over me could be topped. But two dirty and slippery   
women fighting over me is an even better image," he teases with a   
big grin.   
  
"You're incorrigible," she groans, rolling her eyes.  
  
"Yeah, but you love me anyway," he says, leaning forward to rest   
his forehead on hers.  
  
"Yeah, I do," she admits quietly. Suddenly, this wasn't a joke   
anymore. She was very serious. She lifts her hands to his face,   
gently running her thumb across his lips. "I really do love you.   
I always have."  
  
"I know," he whispers. "I love you, too, Mary Elaina Parker.   
Always remember that. No matter what happens . . . "  
  
"Jarod, don't," she interrupts him. "Let's not think about what   
may happen. Let's just enjoy this moment. Right here, right   
now. I've been waiting too long for this."  
  
"For what?" he manages to gasp. Her warm breath washing over his   
face was starting to make him dizzy.  
  
"Our second kiss," she says before closing the gap and covering   
his mouth with her own. She leans as close to him as she can,   
keeping in mind that the baby was between them. For a moment,   
she just enjoys the feel of his lips between her own before they   
both begin grunting impatiently for more. Her tongue begs for   
entrance and he eagerly complies, allowing her to explore the   
deepest recesses. Her hands move up his neck into his thick hair  
and she gently massages his scalp.  
  
"Wow," he says as he breaks away.  
  
"Wow," she repeats. Her eyes are heavily lidded with desire she   
can't hide.  
  
"That was almost worth the wait," he says breathlessly, placing   
small butterfly kisses along her jawline.  
  
"Almost," she responds, equally breathless. "But you better not   
make me wait that long again," she warns playfully, tilting her   
head to allow him better access.  
  
"Wild horses couldn't stop me," he groans before capturing her   
lips once more to start the dance all over again.  
  
To be continued . . . 


	5. High Price of Freedom - Chapter 5

Title - High Price of Freedom  
Author - Nicky  
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)  
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover  
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?  
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Chapter 5  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Rachel fumes, watching the whole scene from the upstairs window.   
She races downstairs, anxious to put a stop to the whole thing.   
She's got to admit. That *woman* moves quickly. She had Jarod   
all hot and panting for her in about 5 minutes flat. She was   
going to be more trouble than Rachel initially thought.  
  
Just as she gets downstairs, a slight ringing noise tingles in   
her ears. She hunts around until she finds Miss Parker's cell   
phone in her jacket pocket.  
  
"Hello?" she answers.  
  
"Parker?" the deep voice on the other end asks.   
  
"No, she's busy right now," Rachel says with a smile. She   
wonders if the man on the other end could be a boyfriend of Miss   
Parker's. She's sure he'd want to know about her current   
activities. "She's got a hot date out on the back porch."  
  
"Yeah, that doesn't surprise me. I hear my sister would sleep   
with anything in pants," Lyle laughs.  
  
"Sister?" Rachel's disappointed. She thought this would be a   
jealous boyfriend who'd race over here and put a stop to the   
awful display on the back porch. So much for that plan.  
  
"Listen, could you tell her to let the poor sap get some air? I   
need to talk to her about work," Lyle says.  
  
"You work with her at the Centre?" Rachel asks. Her mind starts   
churning again with another plan. Who says Jarod's the only   
genius around there? "It must be nice working with family. I   
bet you two share all kinds of secrets. Like her secret plan to   
run off with Jarod instead of bringing him in."  
  
"Jarod? What do you know about Jarod?"  
  
"He's the guy she's making out with," Rachel tells him, feigining   
innocense. "You did know those two were an item, didn't you?"  
  
"Of course I knew about them," Lyle sputters, his voice betraying   
his excitement. Rachel knows she has him right where she wants   
him. "Listen, just forget about that message. I think I'm going   
to come by and surprise my sister instead. You'll keep this our   
little secret, right?"  
  
"Our little secret," she says with an evil grin before hanging   
the phone up. This may work out just yet to her favor. If she   
guessed right about these people, this brother of Miss Parker's   
wouldn't be very happy about Jarod being here. And the idea of   
Miss Parker betraying the Centre was probably an act of treason   
punishable by extreme measures. All Rachel had to do now was get   
Jarod, herself and the twins out the house before those people   
came, guns blazing. The only person caught in the crossfire will   
be dear Miss Parker. She shifts Madison to her hip and heads to   
the back of the house to begin the next phase of her plan.  
  
She peeks through the window and is sickened by the display of   
adolescent hormonal behavior going on out there. She had to put   
a stop to it and get Jarod out of the house. She'll worry about   
herself and the kids later.  
  
"Sorry, Princess. But I gotta do this," she whispers to Madison   
before pinching the girl smartly on the stomach. Rachel's heart   
breaks at the cry of pain from her daughter, but it's a price   
she's willing to pay.  
  
"Jarod," she says, sticking her head out of the back door. "I   
need you."  
  
"What is it now, Rachel?" Miss Parker groans. She releases Jarod   
from her embrace and takes Ryan from his arms.  
  
"Can't you hear Maddie? She's in pain," Rachel almost screams,   
trying to add to the hysteria.   
  
"Is she okay?" Jarod panics, grabbing Madison and giving her a   
quick once over.  
  
"She's fine," Rachel assures him. "Just a little gas, I think.   
She's been switching back and forth between the formula and the   
breast milk during this little escapade. I'm sure her stomach's   
just a little upset. I was looking through the stuff and I don't   
think you have any gas drops. I'll just run to the store for   
some real quick."  
  
"I don't think so," Miss Parker interrupts. "You're not going   
anywhere." She glances over at Jarod with pleading eyes and   
misses the quick smirk cross Rachel's lips.   
  
"I'll go," Jarod offers, answering Miss Parker's unasked   
question. Little did they know, it was just what Rachel was   
counting on. "And I'll take Maddie. Maybe the drive to the   
store will calm her down a bit. I think the CVS 2 blocks over on   
Elmwood is open late."  
  
They walk into the house and Jarod goes to get the keys to the   
car. A knocking at the door stops them all in their tracks.   
Miss Parker puts her fingers to her lips to quiet them all,   
reaching behind her for her gun.  
  
"Who is it?" she calls out.  
  
"Sydney," the voice responds through the door. Miss Parker   
visibly relaxes and puts her gun back. She runs over to the door   
to let the older man inside.  
  
"Sydney," she says, flinging the door open. "What are you doing .   
. . "  
  
Her words get caught in her throat when she notices something   
move at Sydney's side.   
  
"Momma home!" Tyler screams, pulling himself from Sydney and   
running to Miss Parker.  
  
"Tyler," she cries, holding her arms out for the boy. Like a   
pro, she shifts Ryan to one hip and scoops up Tyler in one   
flawless motion. She places little kisses all over his face,   
trying hard to hold back her tears.   
  
"Oh, I missed you so much Baby Boy." She looks over at Jarod and   
gives him an appreciating smile. *Thank you* she mouths to him   
before turning her attention back to the two babies in her arms.  
  
"We'll talk when I get back from the store," Jarod whispers into   
her ear. "With Tyler here, I'd say we just got ourselves a   
couple more options. None of us may have to end up in the Centre   
after all." He kisses her quickly on the lips, then places a   
kiss on Ryan's head and ruffles Tyler's hair.  
  
"Close your mouth, Syd," Miss Parker teases, amused at the man's   
obvious confusion. "Go with Jarod. He'll explain it all to   
you."  
  
Sydney just nods and follows Jarod out the door.  
  
With the men gone, Rachel reaches out for Ryan. Miss Parker   
gives up the child, no longer thinking of using the boy as   
leverage. She was just happy to have Tyler again.  
  
"So who's this little handsome fellow? Your son?" Rachel asks,   
reaching out to stroke Tyler's cheek. Out of reflex, Miss Parker   
pulls away, not letting the woman touch the child.  
  
"This is Tyler. My little brother. But I've practically raised   
him. His mother died during childbirth," Miss Parker explains.  
  
Rachel glances nervously around the room, catching the time. She   
didn't know how far away Miss Parker's brother would be. But she   
was sure he'd be there any minute. She had to figure out a way   
to get out before it was too late. She has to hold back a grin   
when an idea comes to her.  
  
"He's your brother? I thought he called you 'Momma'. Must be   
strange for you. Having this little one depend on you. But you   
not really being what he needs. You weren't the one who carried   
him for nine months inside of you. And you aren't the one who   
can nourish him with your body. You're not a *true* mother."   
Rachel pulls up a corner of her shirt and allows Ryan to reach up   
and find her breast. She sighs with overexaggerated contentment   
to further annoy Miss Parker as the baby nurses. Just as she   
suspected, Miss Parker gets nervous and stands up with her   
brother.  
  
"I'll be in the kitchen getting a snack for Tyler," Miss Parker   
grumbles, allowing Rachel's words to make her feel inadequate.   
She's in the kitchen for a few minutes, cutting up an apple for   
the boy when she hears the front door open. She immmediately   
realizes her mistake in leaving Rachel alone with Ryan, allowing   
her the chance to escape.  
  
"That little sneak," she growls. She leaves Tyler at the table   
with his snack and runs out of the kitchen, pulling out her gun   
in the process. She didn't want to hold the gun on Rachel with   
the baby, but she had no choice.  
  
"Rach - " she starts just as she runs into a scene she didn't   
expect.  
  
"Ah, there you are, Sis," Lyle grins. He had his own gun trained   
on Rachel and a gleam in his eyes that says he's not afraid to   
use it. Slowly Miss Parker lowers her weapon, placing it back in   
her pants waistband. "Your little friend here says you had a hot   
date with our favorite lab rat. Where is he?"  
  
"I don't know what you're talking about," Miss Parker lies   
easily. She glares at Rachel, trying to figure out what was   
going on with the woman. "Why would Jarod be here? What would   
even give you that idea?"  
  
"Parker, I think you better pick your friends better," Lyle   
laughs. "She's got a pretty big mouth.  
  
"She's *not* my friend," Miss Parker emphasizes, glaring at   
Rachel again.   
  
"Well, whatever the case may be. Your houseguest has a big   
mouth. I called about an hour ago. And she was more than eager   
to tell me about a pressing activity you were engaged in."  
  
Before she realizes it, Miss Parker feels a flush rising to her   
cheeks. She has to force herself to think of anything other than   
Jarod's lips all over her.  
  
"The only activity I was engaged in an hour ago was an   
interrogation of my witness. That's all this woman is. She told   
me she knew where Jarod was and I brought her here to question   
her."  
  
"Question her," Lyle repeats incredulously. "Right."  
  
"You can believe me or not, Lyle," Miss Parker sighs her   
exasperation. "You can question this woman yourself and waste   
time trying to get information that I already got. Or we can go   
get Jarod now before it's too late and he disappears again."  
  
"I guess that's a no brainer," Lyle says before releasing Rachel.   
"Miss, you're free to go. I'm sorry about the inconvenience," he   
apologizes insincerely.  
  
"Yeah, thanks again for the information," Miss Parker says to   
Rachel. "I parked your car in the garage. The keys are on the   
counter. You can go through the kitchen to get to it." She   
assumes Jarod took the X-Terra to the store, so the only vehicle   
left for Rachel was her car.  
  
"Sure, I'm glad I can help." Rachel looks to Miss Parker to make   
sure it was okay to be leaving and she nods quickly in response.   
Lyle doesn't notice the silent communication between the two   
women. She takes the keys off the counter and heads toward the   
kitchen door.  
  
"Oh, and Rachel? Take good care of those babies." She silently   
pleads with Rachel and hopes she understands what she's trying   
to say.  
  
"I will," Rachel promises. "I'll guard them with my life. All   
three of them."  
  
Miss Parker closes her eyes to hold in the tears, sighing in   
relief that Tyler will be safe. Now, all she had to do was give   
Rachel enough time to get away and pray that she reaches the drug   
store to find Jarod.  
  
"Alright," Miss Parker finally says after hearing the car start   
and drive away. "Let's go get Jarod."  
  
"Not so fast," Lyle says. Miss Parker looks at him and notices   
that he now has his gun on her.  
  
"What are you doing, Lyle?"  
  
"You don't think I believed that little act, did you?" he asks   
with a laugh. "Like it or not, Parker, we're blood. And I know   
how your mind works. I'm guessing is that you really do know   
where Jarod is. But that there was no way you were actually   
going to take me there."  
  
"So why did you let Rachel go?"  
  
"Come on, Parker. Like I said, we're blood. I'm sure you can   
figure out how my mind works too."  
  
"No thanks. I'd rather stay out of psycholand, if you don't   
mind," she says sarcastically, drawing another laugh from him.  
  
"Why is it that the first thing that comes to mind is 'Takes on   
to know one'? But I won't go there. I can see you're not in the   
mood to play." His laughter dies down and he gets a dangerous   
gleam in his eyes. "When I was 8, my adopted father taught me   
how to fish. He told me that the secret of a true fisherman was   
to know which bait to use. Something told me that Rachel wasn't   
the right bait for the type of fish I'm trying to catch."  
  
"And what is the right bait?" she asks, true fear beginning to   
settle in her heart.  
  
"To catch a fish named Jarod? You, dear sister," Lyle says as if   
it should have been totally clear. "I'm going to use you. I'm   
sure that as we speak, your little friend is scurrying off to   
tell Jarod about your little predicament. It's only a matter of   
time before your knight in shining armor attempts to rescue his   
damsel in distress."   
  
"Unless he doesn't come," Miss Parker counters, praying   
desperately that he doesn't come, while at the same time hoping   
that he does. "Rachel wants Jarod for herself. Now that I'm out   
of the picture, what makes you think she'll even tell him about   
this?"  
  
"He'll come," Lyle says confidently. "He'll always come for you.   
And when he does, I'll be here waiting."  
  
To be continued . . . 


	6. High Price of Freedom - Chapter 6

Title - High Price of Freedom  
Author - Nicky  
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)  
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover  
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?  
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Chapter 6  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Jarod pulls into the parking space at the CVS and marvels at the   
silence from the back seat. There didn't seem to be anything   
wrong with Madison. She was silently looking out the window, in   
awe at all the street lights.  
  
"Syd, does she look like she has gas to you?" Jarod asks.  
  
"I really wouldn't know, Jarod," the older man chuckles. "She   
looks fine to me."  
  
"She was screaming earlier. Rachel said it was from an upset   
stomach. She looks fine to me, too." Jarod chews on his bottom   
lip, trying to shake a sudden feeling of uneasiness.  
  
"Rachel. She's the other young woman at the house? The mother   
of these children?"  
  
"Yeah," Jarod sighs. "This is a big mess. Too bad I didn't hang   
around the Centre long enough to learn the virtues of safe sex."   
Jarod laughs uneasily at his situation.  
  
"So they're yours as well," Sydney comments.  
  
"That's Madison. Ryan is at the house with Parker and Rachel,"   
he explains.  
  
"Jarod, how did this all happen?"  
  
"How far back do you need me to start?" Jarod jokes.  
  
"Not that far," Sydney blushes. "How did you all end up at   
Parker's house together? And might I add that neither woman   
looked very happy with the situation."  
  
"Trust me, Syd. They were on their best behavoir for you. They   
were coexisting rather peacefully without the need for guns and   
cuffs," Jarod laughs.  
  
"Sounds like two dangerous women. I'd hate to be in the middle   
of them. How is it that's exactly where you are, Jarod?"  
  
"The Centre kidnapped Maddie and Ryan. I asked Miss Parker to   
help me rescue them. In exchange, I'd let her take me back so   
she can earn her freedom. But as we spent more time together,   
one thing led to another, and we realized that we didn't want to   
live without each other anymore. Unfortunately, she had been   
gone so long supposedly looking for me that she had to bring me   
back. For her own safety and for Tyler's. He's the only reason   
we came back. But now that we have him, the situation might not   
be as hopeless as we originally thought. There are some other   
options now. As for things with . . ."  
  
"Rachel," Sydney finishes.  
  
"Yeah, things with Rachel are going to be a bit more difficult."  
  
"No, it's Rachel," Sydney points. "Walking across the parking   
lot. It looks like she has the boys with her."  
  
"Oh no," Jarod mumbles, quickly pushing the car door open and   
running across the parking lot to catch up with Rachel. "What   
happened. What are you doing here?" He bends down and lifts up   
Tyler into his arms.  
  
"We have to go. Now, Jarod," she warns him. Spotting the X-  
Terra, she starts to run towards it. Jarod follows her.   
  
"Rachel, what's going on?" he asks again.  
  
"Start driving and I'll tell you," she says, buckling Ryan in the   
other car seat and then reaching for Tyler.  
  
"Where's Miss Parker?" Jarod asks impatiently. He wasn't going   
anywhere until they got answers.  
  
"They're coming for you," Rachel lies. "As soon as you left, she   
called that scary brother of hers. Now they're coming to track   
you down. We have to go."  
  
"Something's not right. I can feel it. Parker wouldn't do   
that," Jarod insists.  
  
"Oh really? She's the type of woman who'd hold me and my   
children hostage, but you don't think she'd do the job she's been   
paid to do for years now? You think you know her well enough to   
bet your life on that? To bet our children's lives?"  
  
"I'm not going to risk the children," he says quietly. Rachel   
sighs in relief. He hands Tyler over to her. And while she's   
busy trying to get him buckled on her lap, Jarod grabs the keys   
to Miss Parker's car off the seat.  
  
"Jarod, what are you doing?" Rachel panics.  
  
"I'm not going to risk the children," he repeats. "But I know   
something's wrong. Sydney, take them up to your cabin. I'm   
going to go get Miss Parker."  
  
"Jarod," Rachel calls. But it's too late. He's already gone.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Jarod parks the car down the street, opting to walk the rest of   
the way. Each step brings him closer to Miss Parker's house, but   
it also brings him more and more certainty that she's in danger.   
No matter what Rachel said, he knew that Miss Parker wouldn't be   
working with Lyle to bring him in. Not after this past week. He   
refused to believe that.  
  
He approaches the house from the rear, scanning the area   
carefully for signs this is a trap. He manages to make his way   
to the back porch without spotting any sweepers waiting for him.   
So far so good. But he wouldn't put anything past Lyle. Peeking   
inside the house, he sees Miss Parker sitting on the couch, her   
back to him. No one appears to be in the room with her. He   
quietly slides the door open and creeps inside.  
  
"Parker," he whispers. Her head snaps up she struggles to look   
around. He can see as he gets closer that she's been gagged.   
More than likely, she's also been bound.   
  
"Parker, I'm here," he says a little louder, moving to where he's   
now in front of her. He works to remove the gag from her mouth   
first before moving to the restraints around her legs.  
  
"Jarod, you gotta go. Rachel told Lyle you were here and he came   
for you," she spits out as soon as the gag is removed.  
  
"Not without you," he refuses.  
  
"Don't worry about me. Just go," she orders. With her feet   
free, Jarod pulls out his pocket knife to work on the ropes   
around her wrists. So intent on his task, he misses the look of   
horror cross her face. "Jarod watch out!"   
  
But the warning comes too late. A sharp pain cracks Jarod skull   
and all he sees is darkness.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Sydney?" Rachels asks meekly. "You think you can pull over for   
a minute? I need to use the restroom and I'm sure the kids could   
use a diaper change."  
  
Sydney glances down at the clock. They'd only been driving an   
hour, but he figures they were far enough outside of Blue Cove to   
safely stop for a minute. He nods at her and smiles gently as he   
begins to search for a place to stop. A few minutes later, he   
takes the next exit and follows the signs to a grocery store,   
passing by a number of gas stations along the way.  
  
"All of Tyler's stuff is still at Parker's house. I'll need to   
run in and get him some diapers and snacks," Sydney explains his   
strange stopping place. "You stay here and get started changing   
the babies."  
  
Rachel smiles at him until he disappears into the store. As soon   
as he's out of view, she reaches for the cell phone he left. She   
thinks for a second before dialing a number. She goes through a   
series of automated question before finally reaching a live   
person.  
  
"FBI, Dover. Can I help you?"  
  
"Yes, this is Agent Rachel Burke. My badge number is AQ-4390657.   
I'm calling to report a hostage situation that I need immediate   
assistance on."  
  
"Hold please," the operator calmly says. Rachel nervously taps   
her fingers, waiting for someone to get back on the line.  
  
"Agent Burke? This is Agent Charles. Now I need for you to tell   
me your exact location."  
  
"I'm about 75 miles outside of Blue Cove, Delaware. At a Safeway   
right off of exit 29 of I-47," she reports. "The hostage is back   
in Blue Cove, last seen at the residence of one of the   
kidnappers. 1720 Mountainbrook Lane. The hostage could possibly   
have been relocated to a business in the area. A place called   
the Centre."  
  
"The Centre? How did you get mixed up with them?" Agent Charles   
asks, noticeably shaken by mention of the place.  
  
"It's a long story. They had my children, who have been rescued.   
But their father is still there."  
  
"Agent Burke, stay where you are. There will be agents there to   
retrieve you in a few minutes. They've already been dispatched."  
  
"Thank you," she says before hanging up the phone. She unstraps   
Madison from her seat and changes her quickly. She was in the   
middle of changing Ryan's diaper when Sydney emerges from the   
store.  
  
"Sorry it took so long. There was only one register open," he   
explains.  
  
"No problem," she comments distractedly. She's focussing on a   
sound in the distance that was getting closer and closer.   
Sirens! The cavalry was near. She turns back to Sydney and   
gives him a sympathetic glance. "I'm sorry, Sydney. But there's   
been a change of plans."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Sydney looks around and notices   
the sirens were surrounding them now. "What is all this?"  
  
"I'm not playing this game the Centre way anymore," she snarls.   
"I'm going to get Jarod and then that place is going down." She   
holds up her badge as the other agents get closer to identify   
herself.  
  
"Agent Burke?" one of them calls.  
  
"Right here," Rachel answers. "Who's in charge?"  
  
"Agent Charles is leading the rescue. He'll be here   
momentarily," the agent tells her.   
  
"I need this man and these children to be placed in protective   
custody," Rachel orders.  
  
"We can take them back to headquarters, Ma'am. They'll be safe   
there."  
  
Rachel kisses her babies on the cheeks before handing them over   
to a female agent. She watches the children get safely inside   
the FBI vehicles and pull away. Sydney glances back at her   
before he's placed in a separate car.   
  
"You don't know what you're getting into," he warns Rachel.   
"These are dangerous people. And Miss Parker isn't one of them."  
  
"As far as I'm concerned, she is. I'm going to get Jarod. And   
whatever happens to her . . . well, I'll have no control over   
that," she says coldly before turning back to the other agent.  
  
Sydney sighs heavily and allows the agents to place him in the   
car. He says a silent prayer for the safety of the two people he   
loves as if they were his own children. The car pulls away and   
he realizes that all he can do now is hope for the best.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Jarod works hard to pry his eyes open and quickly realizes that   
one of them is swollen shut. With the one eye that did open, he   
glances around at his surroundings and knows immediately he's not   
at Miss Parker's house anymore. All he can see are bars. He   
pushes is aching body up off the floor and reaches out for one of   
the bars to help pull himself up. Once he's on his feet, he can   
get a better look around. But he realizes that may have been a   
mistake. With a groan, his mind begins to process where he is.   
He's back at the Centre. Locked in that cage he was in the last   
time he was here. Right after he was captured when Miss Parker   
was shot.  
  
Parker! His mind picks up on the name and he goes on alert   
again, looking around for her. His heart sinks when he notices a   
lump huddled in the far corner. He moves his battered body as   
quickly as he can until he's right next to the body. He prays   
desperately that it's not her as he gently rolls the body over.  
  
"No," he gasps when it's her face he sees. "Parker. Wake up,   
Honey."  
  
With a groan, she begins to stir, not yet opening her eyes.  
  
"That's it," he encourages her. "Wake up, Parker. Open those   
gorgeous eyes for me."  
  
"Jarod?" she asks. Her eyes pop open and he can see the fear in   
them. "Where are we?"  
  
He helps her sit up while he checks her for any injury. Not   
seeing any, he's relieved to know they left her alone. All he   
can see is a small needle-sized mark on her upper arm.  
  
"I think we're at the Centre. The accommodations seem to be a   
bit familiar," he tells her.  
  
"Jarod, what did they do to you?" She lifts a shaky hand up to   
his bruised face.  
  
"I don't know." He hisses when her fingers touch a sensitive   
spot. "But something tells me I'm glad I don't remember. They   
may have drugged me like they probably did you." He points to   
the mark on her arm.  
  
"We have to get out of here. What if they come back for you?"  
"There's no way out," he whispers, dropping his head so he won't   
have to look at her. "I've been here before. Right after you   
were shot and they captured me."  
  
"They had you caged up like an animal?" she asks incredulously.   
"You had a room when you were here before."  
  
"When I was here before, I may not have had any rights, but they   
at least treated me like a person. I wasn't just a pet for you   
demented brother. Lyle's not as accommodating as Sydney was. He   
drugs me. He tortures me. He keeps me in this cage. And   
there's no way out."  
  
"There's got to be a way out," she insists. "Jarod, I'm not   
going to let us die in here."  
  
"That won't happen," he promises. He grabs her face and kisses   
her gently on the lips. "I won't let anything happen to you."   
He bites back the pain shooting through his chest as he pulls   
himself from her arms. Holding on to the bars, he pulls himself   
back up.  
  
"Hey," he yells up towards where he knows the camera is hidden.   
"I know you can hear me."  
  
"Jarod, what are you doing?" she asks.  
  
"Just what I was going to ask," a voice says from the darkness.   
They hear a couple of footsteps before Lyle's face is visible.   
"What do you want, Jarod? Is your room not to your liking?" he   
laughs.  
  
"Listen, you sick freak. I don't care what you do to me. But   
she doesn't need to be in here," Jarod says, nodding his head in   
Miss Parker's direction. Miss Parker looks at Jarod with   
surprise.  
  
"Oh, isn't that sweet. Trying to save her. How noble of you.   
Sis, I told you your white knight would come to your rescue,   
didn't I?"  
  
"Shut up," she growls. "Both of you. Jarod, I'm not going   
anywhere without you."  
  
"She has something you need, Lyle," Jarod continues, ignoring   
Miss Parker's words. "Capturing me is only half of it. There's   
something else the Triumvirate wants returned."  
  
"You mean the DSA's? I took them from your place, Parker."  
  
"That was just the case, you moron," she spits.  
  
"The DSA's are some place safe," Jarod continues. "Some place   
only she can get to."  
  
"Where are they?" Lyle demands to know, sighing impatiently when   
Jarod just smiles.  
  
"I think someone's ready to make a deal," he says with his   
trademark smirk. "Release her and then we talk."  
  
To be continued . . . 


	7. High Price of Freedom - Chapter 7

Title - High Price of Freedom  
Author - Nicky  
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)  
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover  
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?  
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Chapter 7  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Rachel leads the team into Miss Parker's house, carelessly   
searching through the wreckage left behind. It was obvious that   
some kind of struggle had taken place before. And there were a   
few splotches on the floor that looks suspiciously like blood.   
Although it was impossible to tell who's blood it was. But she   
had a feeling that it belonged to Jarod.  
  
"Bag it," she says with a quivering voice, pointing to the stains   
on the floor. She moves through the house sifting through Miss   
Parker's personal belongings. She tries to tell herself she's   
looking for clues to their where-a-bouts, but in all honesty   
she's just trying to get a feel of the woman who owns Jarod's   
heart.  
  
"Agent Charles?" she calls, finally giving up when her search   
through Miss Parker's racy underwear drawer only made her more   
depressed. Not a panty girdle or nursing bra in sight. "I think   
they may be headed towards the Centre since both Miss Parker and   
her brother work there. We should move our search there."  
  
"Agent Burke, we have no idea where this so called place is. It's   
a bit of an urban legend around here. Everyone's heard of it,   
but no one knows if it actually exists," Agent Charles explains.   
"We wouldn't know where to begin to look for this place. And   
once we found it, we wouldn't know where to begin to look for the   
hostage."  
  
Rachel lets out an impatient sigh. She didn't come this far for   
nothing. She was going to find the Centre. And she was going to   
find Jarod. She wasn't going to let anyone stop her.  
  
"Agent Burke. There's someone down here claiming to know the   
suspects," a young agent calls from downstairs. Rachel instantly   
perks back up. Maybe all hope wasn't lost after all. She   
straightens her shoulders and marches downstairs. She'd scare   
the information from this person if necessary.  
  
"I'm Agent Burke," she introduces herself the tall, gangly man.   
"And you are?"  
  
"Broots," he replies nervously. "What's going on here? What are   
you all doing here?"  
  
"Mr. Broots," Rachel drawls, pulling out the southern charm. She   
can see this man is harmless and won't be needing intimidation.   
"You   
know the owner of this home?"  
  
"Miss Parker? Yeah, we're coworkers. And friends. I've known   
her for years," he says. He looks around at the condition the   
house is in and starts to panic. "Did something happen to her?"  
  
"We're trying to find her now," Rachel admits. "We have some   
questions for her. We think she may have gone to The Centre, but   
we don't know where that is. You think you could tell us?" A   
couple of bats of her eyelashes and she has Broots eating out of   
her hand. He tells her all he needs to know and then some. When   
she has enough information, she dismisses him.  
  
"Agent Burke?" Broots asks before leaving. "There was an older   
gentleman here earlier. Sydney. Do you know where he is?"  
  
"Check with FBI Headquarters in Dover. He should be there," she   
tells him, smiling when the man is visibly relieved. Miss Parker   
seemed to have very good and very loyal friends for some reason.   
She didn't deserve them.  
  
Rachel watches Broots get in his car and pull away, presumably to   
retrieve his friend from FBI Headquarters. She then turns to   
search for Agent Charles. She's surprised to find he's right next   
to her.  
  
"Did you get the address?" he asks.  
  
"Yeah. It's not too far from here," she tells him. "Let's move   
out. It's going to be dark soon."  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Jarod lets out a painful moan as he tries to shift his body into   
a more comfortable position.  
  
"I think they may have broken a few ribs," he groans.  
  
"Are you going to be okay, Jarod?" Miss Parker asks, concern   
masking her face. She moves his head onto her lap and soothingly   
runs her fingers through his hair.  
  
"I will be when they let you out of here," he says.  
  
"Jarod, I'm not leaving you in here all . . ."  
  
"You can't be here," he interrupts her. "I promised you your   
freedom."  
  
"That freedom's not going to mean anything without you," she   
whispers, leaning over to kiss him on the forehead.  
  
"Well, Lyle's talking to your father right now to see if they   
agree to the deal."  
  
"You really think they want the DSA's that badly?" she wonders   
out loud. "Why? Is it all just about the money?" She looks   
down on him when he noticeably tenses. "Jarod?"  
  
"Don't worry about the why, Lanie." Jarod lifts his head from   
off of Miss Parker's lap, taking a moment to get his equilibrium   
back before standing up all the way. He stumbles across the cell   
and turns away from her.  
  
"You know what's so important about them." She stands up and   
walks right behind him, hands on her hips ready to drag the truth   
out of him if necessary. "Jarod, why are they so desperate to   
get these DSA's? What's on them that's so important?"  
  
"The secrets of the universe," he laughs cynically. "One of   
life's biggest mysteries, unraveled and reduced to a simple   
scientific equation."  
  
"Jarod, what did you do?" she whispers. "What did you discover?"   
He turns to face her and his dark eyes bore straight into her   
soul.  
  
"Something that no man should *ever* know," he growls through   
clenched teeth. Shutting his eyes, he leans back against the   
wall and slides down until he's sitting again. A moment later,   
she can hear his sobs wracking his body, obviously causing pain   
to his battered frame.  
  
"What is it, Baby?" she cries along with him. Sitting on the   
floor next to him, she wraps him in her arms and rubs his back to   
calm him down. "You're scaring me."  
  
"I scared myself," he sniffs. "The things that I'm capable of   
thinking up are terrifying. The things that I'm able to do.   
Things that I refused to allow them to do you you. To us.   
That's the real reason I left all those years ago. And I took   
the DSA's with me so that my SIMs wouldn't allow them to . . . "  
He stops, not wanting to say any more than that.  
  
"To what?" She's shaking now, truly afraid of what he has to say.   
But she notices that he's gone still. "Jarod? Jarod can you   
hear me?" She shakes him and gets no response.  
  
"Jarod," she screams. She lays him out on the ground and tries   
to revive him. "Please wake up, Jarod."  
  
None of her efforts are successful and she gets scared.   
Remembering how Jarod summoned Lyle earlier, she runs over to   
where the camera is situated and screams for help. A second   
later she hears Lyle's footsteps come through the door.  
  
"What's the problem now?" he asks in an irritated tone. "What's   
wrong with Loverboy? He's not a pro like you, Sis. You really   
should take it easy on him."  
  
"Shut up, you idiot. There's something wrong with him," she   
yells.  
  
"Hey, it's not my fault if he can't handle your stamina . . ."   
His words are cut off by her hand shooting through the bars and   
grabbing around his neck.  
  
"I suggest you get him medical attention immediately," she   
growls. "Especially if you want to see your precious DSA's   
again. If he dies, then all the secrets die with him."  
  
"Fine," he gasps, finally pulling out of her grip. He reaches in   
his pocket for his cellphone and dials a few numbers.  
  
"It's me," he says, rubbing his sore neck. "Send a medical team   
down. We need to transfer him to the renewal wing." He hangs up   
the phone and places it back in his pocket.  
  
"Happy now? He's going to be taken care of. So that when he   
wakes up, he can tell you where the DSA's are and you can run and   
go get them like a good little girl."  
  
"Daddy agreed to the deal," she comments with some surprise, her   
emotions mixed. Part of her hoped he would so that she could get   
out. But part of her wanted to stay with Jarod, even if she had   
to be a prisoner of that place along with him.  
  
She walks over to Jarod's unconscious form and kneels next to   
him, bending over his head.  
  
"Get better," she whispers into his ear. "Get better so that you   
can help me think of a way out of here. For both of us." She   
kisses his lips gently just as the medical team arrives to take   
him away.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
"How do you want to do this?" Rachel asks Agent Charles once they   
arrived at the Centre. They didn't know much about the place and   
didn't want to rush in with guns blazing. They just needed to   
make sure that Jarod was inside before deciding how to proceed.  
  
"It's your call," he replies, looking at the intimidating   
building. "Like I said, this is the first any of us have ever   
seen this place. Up until now, it was just a myth."  
  
"The place seems to be very well guarded. Too guarded for us to   
try to sneak in. We're going to have to go in through the front   
doors," she says. Agent Charles widens his eyes at her nerve,   
but follows her anyway after making a quick check for his weapon.  
  
Rachel leads him to the doors and waits patiently for him to open   
them for her. Smiling her thanks, she walks through and looks   
for an information desk or something. Spotting a guard off to   
the left, she heads that way, grabbing Agent Charles' arm in mock   
affection.  
  
"Just play along," she whispers to him, leading him to the desk   
with her.  
  
"May I help you?" the young officer asks.  
  
"Hi. My name's Rachel. And this is my husband, Jamie," she says   
by way of introduction. "I have an old friend who works here. I   
wanted to stop by and surprise her."  
  
"What's the name?"  
  
"Parker. Miss Parker," Rachel tells him nervously. She begins   
to panic for a second when a terrified look crosses the officer's   
face.  
  
"M-M-Miss Parker? Ho-hold on a second," he stutters in obvious   
fear. He quickly turns and dials a number on the phone behind   
him. After a few 'uhm-hmms' and 'are you sures', the officer hangs up   
and faces them again. "Take those elevators over there up to the   
fourth floor. Turn left and her secretary's at the end of the hall."  
  
"Thanks a lot," Rachel smiles, squeezing Agent Charles to prompt   
him to do the same.  
  
"I can't believe it was that easy," Agent Charles says once   
they're in the elevator. "But why are we going to this woman's   
office? She wouldn't be holding your hostage in there, would   
she?"  
  
"No, but I think I'll be able to persuade her to lead me to him,"   
Rachel says, imagining her sweet revenge. "It won't be long now.   
I'll have Jarod back and Miss Parker will have what she deserves   
- nothing."  
  
Agent Charles takes a breath like he's about to say something,   
but the look in Rachel's eyes suggest he should just keep his   
mouth shut. Something tells him that there was more to this   
situation than what Agent Burke was telling him. She was in this   
for personal reasons. Suddenly he began to wonder what he'd   
gotten himself involved in.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The Centre medics take Jarod into a room in the renewal wing and   
unceremoniously dumps him on a bed, causing Miss Parker to cringe   
at the pain he would be feeling if her were awake.  
  
"Watch it," she yells, pushing one of the orderlies out of her   
way. She stands next to Jarod's bed and lays her hand on his   
chest to reassure herself he was still breathing.   
  
"That'll be all," Lyle tells the men. "Let the doctor know he's   
here." The orderlies nod and silently let themselves out.  
  
"Alright. Your little Boy Toy is all safe and tucked in. Let's   
go talk to Dad now," Lyle says, grabbing Miss Parker's arm.  
  
"I'm not leaving him," she insists, yanking her arm from Lyle's   
grasp. "Not until I know he's going to be okay. Not until I   
know what you had your goons do to him." She narrows her eyes,   
shooting him an accusing glare.  
  
"Parker, we need to . . ."  
  
"Ah, Miss Parker," the doctor says as he walks into the room,   
cutting off whatever Lyle was about to say. He smiles at the   
woman standing next to the bed and holds out his arms. "It's   
been so long."  
  
"Dr. Parini!" she exclaims cheerfully, running to the man like   
she did when she was a little girl. Next to Sydney, he was the   
nicest adult working at the Centre. He was the only doctor ever   
able to give her shots without a big fuss. "I thought you   
retired years ago."  
  
"Just took a sabbatical for awhile," he tells her. "I've been   
back for a few months."   
  
Her smile turns into a grimace when she turns back to Jarod's   
badly broken form. The doctor hears her dejected sigh and takes   
note of the patient on the bed.  
  
"I see you two are still inseparable." He places a hand on her   
shoulder and feels her lean slightly into his touch. "Don't   
worry. I'll patch Jarod up, good as new. Just like always.   
So, what kind of trouble have you gotten him in this time?"  
  
"I know some of our adventures back then got a little . . .   
dangerous. And that most of them were my idea," she smiles   
in reminisence. "But it wasn't me this time. I swear."   
  
They both laugh for a minute at how many times in the past she's   
given Dr. Parini that same excuse after her and Jarod showed up   
in his office with various mysterious injuries. The moment is   
short lived as they look over in Lyle's direction, shooting   
daggers at him. They know he's to blame this time.   
  
"Do you have any idea what's wrong with him?" she asks.   
  
"I'm assuming he was beaten pretty badly, but I don't see any   
evidence of internal bleeding. Probably a couple of bruised or   
broken ribs. I'll wrap his chest and give him something for the   
pain. Once his body recovers a bit from the shock, I'm sure he'll   
wake up." He sends her a gentle smile to let her know Jarod would   
be fine. His smile is contagious and Miss Parker soon finds   
herself smiling back, believing everything would be alright.  
  
"You heard the man, Sis. Now, let's go," Lyle insists, bringing   
a frown to Miss Parker's face.  
  
"Go on," the doctor nudges her. "He's in good hands."  
  
"Alright," she relents. "But I'll be right back to check on him   
as soon as I'm done." She leans down to give Jarod one more kiss   
on the cheek before following Lyle out the door.  
  
Halfway down the hall, she turns in the opposite direction from   
her father's office.  
  
"Where are you going?" Lyle is puzzled.  
  
"Lyle, you kidnapped me from my home sometime last night, I   
assume. I'd like to get into some fresh clothes, if you don't   
mind,"  
  
"Whatever," he sighs. "Just hurry it up." He sits on the sofa   
outside her office to give her some privacy.  
  
She rolls her eyes and then pushes her door open, barely taking   
time to notice her assistant absent from his desk. She walks   
straight to the little closet she keeps for times such as this, stopping   
only when she sees her missing assistant now sitting at her desk.  
  
"Dennis, what are you doing in here?" she asks with some   
annoyance. She continues on to the closet and pulls out the   
first suit she comes to.  
  
"He's here with me," an icy voice drips behind her.   
  
Miss Parker starts to turn around, only to feel the butt of a gun   
pressed into her back, mere inches from where the last bullet   
pierced. She looks at Dennis and can now see that the man is   
sitting there in handcuffs, not trying very hard to mask his   
fear.  
  
"Put your hands up and turn around very slowly," the voice says   
again.  
  
Miss Parker complies, her anger growing once she realizes who her   
assailant is. And she can see that she's not alone this time.  
  
"Rachel," Miss Parker growls. "What brings you here?"  
  
To be continued . . . 


	8. High Price of Freedom - Chapter 8

Title - High Price of Freedom  
Author - Nicky  
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)  
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover  
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?  
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Chapter 8  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Oh, you know good and well what I want, Miss Parker. Now where   
is he?"  
  
"You think I'm just going to tell you that?" Miss Parker asks   
with a joyless laugh. "I don't think so."  
  
"I figured you'd make this difficult," Rachel says, rolling her   
eyes. "I was giving you one last chance. But since you don't   
want to cooperate, I guess I no longer have any use for you."   
She takes the safety off the gun and points it at Miss Parker's   
heart.  
  
"Agent, stand down," Agent Charles says finally. He realizes   
that Rachel was about to seriously cross a line. He raises his   
own gun and points it at Rachel.  
  
"Stay out of this, Charles. This is between me and her. She's   
the only thing standing in the way of the my life. My   
happiness."   
  
"Listen to yourself, Rachel," Miss Parker spits out. "You're   
pathetic. You're thinking about your life. Your happiness.   
What about what Jarod wants? You think he wants you? It's me he   
wants. And you know it. You have to accept that."  
  
"Shut up!" Rachel screams. "Both of you."  
  
"Calm down, Burke. Put the gun down. I don't want to have to   
shoot you," Agent Charles warns. "She hasn't done anything."  
  
"Oh, she's done plenty. She's guilty of hurting my Jarod. And   
I'm not going to let her do it again." Rachel rationalizes in her   
own mind. Her voice is colder and her movements are more   
resolute. It's as if she's made her decision and she knows   
exactly what she has to do. Her eyes lose any light they once   
had, and turn glaring at Miss Parker with a chilling darkness.   
  
Miss Parker closes her eyes, knowing that her death is imminent.   
She squeezes them tight, waiting for the gunshot. She jumps when   
she hears it, but it takes a moment for her to realizes she   
wasn't hit. Opening her eyes, she sees Rachel, writhing on the   
floor in pain, holding onto her right shoulder. Agent Charles is   
bending over her, trying to stop the blood flow.  
  
"What's going on in here?" Lyle asks, rushing into the room after   
hearing the gunshot, his own gun in hand. He surprised to see   
the two agents, one shot, and one holding a smoking gun.  
  
"Stay where you are," Agent Charles warns, standing up to get   
control of the situation. "I don't know who you people are or   
what's going on here. All I know is that I just had to shoot a   
fellow agent."  
  
"What's going on here, you ask? Well, let me explain a little   
something to you," Lyle sneers. "Here at the Centre, we don't   
like questions. I mean, we could answer them, but then we'd just   
have to kill you. So how about I just skip the answering part."   
  
Before anyone could blink, Lyle shoots Agent Charles in the head.   
The man's surprised corpse falling instantly dead to the floor.   
He turns the gun to Rachel next, finishing the job the other   
agent started. Miss Parker stares into the dying woman's   
eyes until all the life leaves them. She bends down and out of   
some strange notion of respect, closes Rachel's still open eyes.   
She barely registers the last shot, killing her assistant.  
  
"Lyle, you just executed 3 people," she cries, terrified he was   
about to do the same to her. Or worse. Scared that he's go   
after Jarod, too.  
  
"Don't worry, Sis. No harm can come to you," he assures. But   
some how his words just frighten her even more. "You're too   
important to the project."  
  
"Project? What are you talking about?"  
  
"I'm talking about the grand scheme of things, Parker," he   
laughs. "What? You didn't think we thought you'd actually catch   
Jarod and let you free, did you? No. We have big plans for the   
two of you. Just as soon as we get those DSA's back. We can   
finish the work that Jarod ironically enough started."  
  
"What work?" she asks, stalling him for time while her mind tried   
to come up with a way out of this.  
  
"Just before he escaped, Jarod unwittingly developed the key that   
unlocked the mysteries of the universe. He was basically a fluke   
of nature. A natural born pretender. A gift from God. But he   
came up with a way for us to be God and make our own pretenders.   
Once he figured out what we would be doing with that information   
and who we'd be using, he took off."  
  
"You were going to use him. And me," she realizes, suddenly   
understanding why Jarod was so upset before. She wobbles a bit   
from the shock, grabbing onto the back of a chair for support.  
  
Lyle shrugs his shoulder at her as if the notion weren't that big   
a deal. He bends down to take the weapon from Agent Charles and   
Miss Parker sees her chance. She quickly picks up the chair   
she's holding on to, not even bothering to try to stay quiet.   
She needs as much force as she can gather. Lyle hears her and   
turns around, but all he sees is the chair swinging towards his   
head.  
  
He hits the ground with a thump, a stream of blood dripping from   
his head. She checks to see if he's dead or not and then takes   
the cuffs from Agent Charles to cuff Lyle to her closet door.   
She gets all of the guns that have been scattered across the   
floor and moves to her desk to dial a number on the phone.  
  
"This is Sydney," the deep voice answers on the other end.  
  
"Sydney, thank God," she cries.   
  
"Parker! It's Parker," he says to someone on the background.   
"Are you okay? Broots went by your house and saw the place   
crawling with FBI."  
  
"I'm fine," she tries to assure him. Although she's not so sure   
of that fact herself. "I just need to get me and Jarod out of   
here. And quickly. Where are you? Are the kids with you?"  
  
"On the way back to the Centre. We figured that's where you and   
Jarod would be. And yes, the kids are here. They're fine."  
  
"They're fine. I'm fine. Jarod's going to be fine. It's all   
over," she sighs in relief before she feels her legs give away   
under her. Tears begin to stream down her face from the extreme   
emotion she feels flowing throughout her body. She feels lucky   
she cheated death. She feels sad that three people had to die in   
her office today. She feels confused at the strong maternal   
instict she seems to have naturally developed over the past week.   
But mostly she feels the pains of impending change. Like she   
told Sydney, it was all over. And she knew things would never be   
the same again.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Jarod looks out into the silent woods surrounding the cabin.   
They'd been there for 3 days. And there's been no sign that   
anyone had followed them. They were probably safe. He takes his   
first deep breath in a long time, releasing a lot of the pent up   
tension of fear of being captured he once held. Freedom never   
felt better. Because this time he wasn't alone.  
  
"Deep cleansing breaths?" Miss Parker asks, coming up from behind   
him and scaring him a bit.  
  
"Just taking in the sweet smell of freedom," he smiles, pulling   
her into his arms. "The kids asleep?"  
  
"Maddie is. But the boys were playing together so quietly. I   
didn't want to disturb them," she says, snuggling into his hug.   
"They get along well. Maybe in time, this will all be just an   
unhappy memory. Maybe they'll . . . "  
  
"They'll forget. They're not going to remember this. None of   
it. They're too young," he whispers assuringly before giving her   
a quick kiss on the forehead. They reluctantly pull apart and go   
to sit on the porch swing, swinging in a soothing motion for a   
few minutes.  
  
"I got an e-mail today from Broots," she says suddenly, breaking   
the comfortable silence. "A memorial service is being held by   
the FBI for Rachel and that other agent that was with her." She   
buries her face in his chest and begins sobbing, confusing Jarod   
with her obvious overwhelming grief.   
  
"It's okay, Lanie," he tries to calm her. "This may sound cruel   
and heartless, but Rachel got what she deserved. I don't wish   
what happened to her on anyone. But Syd warned her about the   
type of people at the Centre. She was so bent on revenge and   
getting at me, that she got careless. And that got her killed."  
  
"I know that in my head," she sniffs. "But like her or not, she   
was everything to those twins. Now, they have to grow up without   
a mother. I know what that's like. I wouldn't wish *that* on   
anyone." She's puzzled when he gets a dreamy smile on his face   
before leaning down to capture her lips with his own.  
  
"They'll have a mother," he says gently, stroking her cheek with   
his thumb.  
  
"I know you're a pretender, Jarod. But I'm sure even this is   
beyond your capabilities. You'd make a hideous woman," she says   
with a laugh.  
  
"Oh darn," he jokes. "I guess I'll have to find an actual woman   
to fill the position, then. Any ideas?"  
  
"I may know of someone who's interested," she says, climbing into   
his lap and throwing her arms around his neck. She pulls his   
earlobe into her mouth before giving it a light bite. "For a   
price, of course." She moves lower and starts kissing his neck.  
  
"I'll give her anything if she does this to me, too," he smiles,   
starting to get a little short of breath from the teasing her   
mouth was doing. He decides to play, too, slipping his hand   
beneath her shirt and running his fingers up and down her back.   
She lets out a small moan when his lips find her neck and he   
starts torturing her the same way she did him.  
  
"I, um . . . boy that feels good," she gasps, closing her eyes in   
ecstasy. She completely forgets what she was about to say and   
just enjoys the feel of him. He suddenly breaks contact, sending   
her eyes back open with a look of impatient annoyance in them. A   
little straggled groan escapes her pouted lips.  
  
"Lanie? The price? What would this woman want?" He grins   
smugly when he sees her cheeks flush in embarrassment. He   
actually made her lose her train of thought.  
  
"Well, she'll want to get married," she starts, tilting her head   
to expose more neck to Jarod. He eagerly takes the hint and   
starts back to his ministrations.  
  
"No problem," he mutters between kisses. "We'll be glad to have   
her."  
  
"But she doesn't come alone. She's a package deal. Her and her   
little boy." She looks at him nervously when his lips suddenly   
go still on her neck. "Would that be asking too much?"  
  
"Lanie, are you serious? I'd take you if you had 15 kids. And   
I'd love them all like my own," he says with a deep, promising   
kiss. "And who knows. Maybe some day they *will* all be mine."  
  
"Let's get these out of diapers first," she smiles before   
returning his kiss. "Then we'll talk about evening things out.   
You guys outnumber me and Maddie. We need another girl around   
here." She laughs when his stubble tickles her neck.  
  
"You know, baby making can be kind of tricky. Maybe we should   
make a couple of practice runs," he says, waggling his eyebrows   
suggestively. He goes to kiss her again when a hand on his chest   
stops him.  
  
"Not so fast, Genius. You're making an honest woman out of me   
FIRST." She turns her hand and curls it around his shirt,   
pulling him until their lips meet in a fiery crash. She kisses   
him til he's within an inch of his life before rising from his   
lap, leaving him panting and breathless on the swing. "And then   
I promise you that we'll do so much . . . practicing . . . that   
we'll be experts by the time the kids are ready for that baby   
sister." She gives him one more quick kiss and heads back into   
the cabin, leaving him stunned and fighting for coherence.  
  
The blood starts to flow towards his brain again and he's finally   
able to shake himself from the trance she left him in. He never   
pegged her for the 'waiting until we're married' type. The   
thought rushes through his brain, causing him to chuckle a bit.   
It would be tough to wait. He wanted her so bad his teeth ached.   
But she was worth it. They've waited this long, what was   
another . . . hour, he thinks with a smile as he looks down at   
his watch. Just the length of time it would take to pack the   
kids up and head to the nearest justice of the peace.  
  
"Hey, Parker," he calls into the house, unable to hide the glee   
from his voice. She steps back to the door and he suddenly sees   
her in a different light. He sees a wife. He sees a mother. It   
momentarily takes away his breath. "Why don't you call up that   
friend of yours. I think she'll be perfect for us. Tell her to   
meet us in town at the courthouse. I thought it would be fun to   
get married on our first date. That way, I stand a good chance   
of getting past first base with her," he winks.  
  
"Jarod," she gasps. She runs out the house and jumps in his   
arms. "You mean it?" She pulls back and he sees tears sparkling   
in her eyes. He decides he has to be serious and honest with   
her.  
  
"I mean it," he swears. "I love you, Lanie. I want you to be my   
wife and the mother of my children. I want to be the father of   
yours."  
  
The tears keep on falling down her face, but she manages a joy-  
filled smile that threatened to crack her cheeks.  
  
"I love you too, Jarod," she says through her happy tears. She   
meets his mouth halfway and they seal the deal with a kiss.   
  
Jarod was beyond happy too. The woman of his dreams was in his   
arms, kissing him with all she had because she wanted to.   
Because she wanted him. She wanted to marry him. And to raise   
his children. She wanted the happily ever after. It was more   
than he could have ever hoped for. It was the stuff, literally,   
of his wildest dreams.   
  
She breaks the kiss and goes back in to get the kids ready while   
he lags behind a moment. He looks out one more time at the   
silent forest and takes one more deep breath. Suddenly, freedom   
smelled so much sweeter. The price had been high, but in the   
end, it was worth it.  
  
The End. 


End file.
